Thursday, July 14, 2005

Progress in Ohio

I called the Ohio Department of Health, Office of Vital Records, expecting to be told that I would be able to get a death certificate for Alex, but not a birth certificate. But guess what? Ohio now officially offers a birth certificate for stillborn babies. I can't remember what they call it, but it just went in this year's budget and is now in effect. You just have to indicate that it is a birth certificate for a stillborn baby and send in the $15 fee. Hooray for progress.

5 comments:

laura said...

what?????? when exactly did this take effect? we got a zillion different answers when we tried to get a birth certificate but they all ended in "no". is there a link or a number you can give me?

Catherine said...

I deleted the email from the woman who worked for the legislation here in Ohio. But she said that it was in the budget, just not in statutory language form as of yet, since they are ironing out the details of the language. But if you send them a request, they should know what you are looking for...and they did when I called. The number I called was (614) 466-2531. The guy said to fill out the form they provide online, indicate it's for a stillborn baby, and snail mail it in.

Anonymous said...

The Budget Bill in Ohio just passed a few weeks ago. Bits of it went into effect immediately, bits go into effect 90 days after the governor signed it. I think it is HB 66. It's 3000+ pages so I don't advise perusing it on line.

I'm really, really pleased that you will be able to get a birth certificate for Alex.

laura said...

i wonder if it's retroactive. i'll check it out. thanks for the info!

Catherine said...

I hope it is. I mean, really, you can get a copy of a regular birth certificate anytime...why should this be any different?

Mom

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