2018 -- H 7765 SUBSTITUTE A

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LC004681/SUB A

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2018

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO HEALTH AND SAFETY - VITAL RECORDS

     

     Introduced By: Representatives Ajello, Lombardi, Walsh, McNamara, and Donovan

     Date Introduced: February 28, 2018

     Referred To: House Judiciary

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

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     SECTION 1. Section 23-3-16 of the General Laws in Chapter 23-3 entitled "Vital

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Records" is hereby amended to read as follows:

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     23-3-16. Death registration.

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     (a) A death certificate for each death which occurs in this state shall be filed with the

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state registrar of vital records or as otherwise directed by the state registrar within seven (7)

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calendar days after death and prior to removal of the body from the state, and shall be registered

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if it has been completed and filed in accordance with this section; provided:

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     (1) That if the place of death is unknown, a death certificate shall be filed with the state

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registrar of vital records or as otherwise directed by the state registrar within seven (7) calendar

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days after the occurrence; and

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     (2) That if death occurs in a moving conveyance, a death certificate shall be filed with the

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state registrar of vital records or as otherwise directed by the state registrar.

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     (b) The funeral director, his or her duly authorized agent, or person acting as agent, who

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first assumes custody of a dead body, shall file the death certificate. He or she shall obtain the

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personal data from the next of kin or the best qualified person or source available. He or she shall

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obtain the medical certification of cause of death from the person responsible for certification.

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The death certificate shall indicate the following:

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     (1) The sex of the decedent shall be recorded to reflect the decedent's gender identity, as

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reported by the next of kin or the best qualified person available, unless the person completing the

 

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death certificate is presented with a document that memorializes the decedent's gender transition.

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In case of conflicting information on the sex of the decedent from the sources, the death

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certificate shall be based on documentation that memorializes the decedent's gender transition.

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Documents that may memorialize a gender transition include: written instructions from the

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decedent; a court order approving a name or gender change; an advance health care directive;

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documentation of an appropriate course of treatment for the purpose of gender transition;

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documentation of a change to the gender marker on a birth certificate; or a state or federally

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issued identification card, or any additional document as authorized by the Rhode Island

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department of health. If more than one document is presented and the documents are in conflict

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regarding the decedent's gender identity, the most recent document that memorializes the

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decedent's gender transition shall prevail. If documentation is not available, it shall be based on

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information from individuals most familiar with the decedent's gender identity at the time of

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death.

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     (c) A physician, after the death of a person whom he or she has attended during his or her

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last illness, or the physician declaring that person dead, or if the death occurred in a hospital, a

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registered hospital medical officer duly appointed by the hospital director or administrator, shall

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immediately furnish for registration a standard certificate of death to a funeral director or other

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authorized person or any member of the family of the deceased, stating to the best of his or her

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knowledge and belief the name of the deceased, the disease of which he or she died, where it was

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contracted, the duration of the illness from which he or she died, when last seen alive by the

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physician, or, if death occurs in a hospital, when last seen alive by a physician and the date of

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death.

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     (d) When death occurred without medical attendance as set forth in subsection (c) or

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when inquiry is required by chapter 4 of this title, the medical examiner shall investigate the

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cause of death and shall complete and sign the medical certification within forty-eight (48) hours

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after taking charge of the case.

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     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO HEALTH AND SAFETY - VITAL RECORDS

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     This act would require that a death certificate reflect the decedent's gender identity, as

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reported by the next of kin or the best qualified person available, unless the person completing the

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death certificate is presented with a document that memorializes the decedent's gender transition.

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     This act would take effect upon passage.

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