Authorizes the commissioner of health to issue copies and transcripts of death certificates, which do not include the cause of death or medical certifications, for genealogical and research purposes.
Summary
This bill amends the Public Health Law to authorize the commissioner of health, upon request, to issue a copy or transcript of a death record for genealogical or research purposes. The records provided under this authority would exclude the decedent’s cause of death and the medical certificate, limiting the information released to non-medical portions of the death record.
The measure is narrowly focused on access to vital records for historical, family-history, academic, and other research uses. It creates a specific pathway for applicants seeking death record information without opening access to the full certified death certificate or sensitive medical details.
Impact
If enacted, the bill would modify section 4174 of the Public Health Law to add a new category of death record disclosure for genealogical and research purposes. The Department of Health would be required to provide copies or transcripts of death records on request, but only in a redacted form that omits cause-of-death information and the medical certificate. The practical effect would be to expand access to death records for researchers, genealogists, historians, and members of the public seeking family records, while preserving confidentiality around medical information.
Sentiment
Based on the bill text and available context, the bill appears to be noncontroversial and administrative in nature. There are no recorded committee transcripts or votes indicating opposition or support, but the proposal’s limited scope suggests it is intended to improve access to public records without affecting core privacy protections. The overall tone is procedural and facilitative rather than partisan.
Contention
The main point of potential contention is the balance between public access to death records and privacy concerns surrounding sensitive medical and cause-of-death information. Supporters would likely emphasize genealogical research, historical access, and transparency in vital records, while any critics would focus on ensuring that the exclusion of cause-of-death and medical certificates is sufficient to protect confidentiality. Because the bill explicitly withholds those details, the privacy concerns appear to be addressed directly in the text.
Requires the department of health to enter into a contract with an entity experienced in maintaining genealogical research databases for the digitalization and indexing of certain vital records.
Requires the department of health to enter into a contract with an entity experienced in maintaining genealogical research databases for the digitalization and indexing of certain vital records.
Requires the department of health to enter into a contract with an entity experienced in maintaining genealogical research databases for the digitalization and indexing of certain vital records.
Enacts the mental health assessment and record keeping for the coroner's office act; requires the coroner, coroner and coroner's physician, or the medical examiner, to conduct a mental health assessment when a death occurs in such person's jurisdiction; requires death certificates list an underlying mental illness as the cause of death when a person commits suicide; requires life insurance policies to pay upon a suicide which the coroner, coroner and coroner's physician, or the medical examiner indicated an underlying mental illness as the cause of death.
To Amend The Law Concerning Death Certificates; And To Clarify The Medical Professionals Who May Sign A Medical Certificate Of Death And Pronounce Death Of A Patient.