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(a) Except as provided in 24 RCNY Health Code §§ 201.07, 203.07 and 205.07, and 207.21, inspection of vital records or data filed with the Department pursuant to this Title may be made and transcripts of records may be obtained pursuant to the provisions of 24 RCNY Health Code § 3.25 and § 17-169 of the Administrative Code, respectively. The request to inspect vital records may be granted only if the Commissioner or the Commissioner's designee agree that the requested information is necessary for a proper purpose. Inspection of any vital records or data for the collection of information for sale or release to the public, or for other speculative purposes shall not be deemed a proper purpose. The Department may impose reasonable conditions as to the use and redisclosure of information, and may limit access to the minimum necessary to fulfill the purpose for which information is requested.
(1) Requests by governmental agencies, whether foreign or domestic, for certified copies of birth and spontaneous termination of pregnancy records or for certifications of birth, pursuant to § 17-169 of the Administrative Code, or for any individually identifiable information contained in the Department's vital records maintained, pursuant to this Title, or for verifications thereof, shall specify the official use to which the requested information will be put.
(2) A request for a certification of birth made by the following persons must be accompanied by proof that the individual named on such certification of birth is deceased: spouse, domestic partner, parent of a child over the age of 18, child, sibling, niece, nephew, aunt, uncle, grandchild, great grandchild, grandniece, or grandnephew. Proof of death for this purpose may include, but is not limited to, certified copies of death certificates and letters testamentary.
(b) Except as provided in 24 RCNY Health Code § 205.07, no transcript, paper, file, report, record, or proceeding concerning a death shall be provided, except to:
(1) the spouse, domestic partner, parent, child, sibling, niece, nephew, aunt, uncle, grandparent, grandchild, great grandchild, great-great grandchild, grandniece, or grandnephew of the decedent;
(2) the legal representative of the estate of the decedent, or the individual identified on a death certificate filed with the Department as the person in control of the disposition;
(3) a party with a property right who demonstrates to the Department that information beyond the fact of the death of the decedent is necessary to protect or assert a right of that party;
(4) a funeral director who requests the record or information within twelve (12) months of when the death of his or her client was registered; or
(5) persons or government agencies who otherwise establish that such records are necessary or required for a judicial or other proper purpose, or to prevent the misuse or misappropriation of City, state or federal governmental funds.
(c) Except as provided in 24 RCNY Health Code § 205.07(a), the Commissioner or the Commissioner's designee may grant access to unidentifiable line or cell vital records data or identifiable vital records information to qualified researchers for scientific purposes. Researchers shall submit a written request for access to such information to the Commissioner or the Commissioner's designee for review. The Commissioner or the Commissioner's designee may require such researcher to agree to conditions governing the possession and use of the data by the researcher. No person shall violate any term or condition of a written data use agreement filed with the Department upon which the Department or the Commissioner has relied to grant access to information or data.
(d) Proof satisfactory to the Department of the identity of the person making a request to inspect vital records or data such as a government issued identification record which may include a birth certificate, passport and other photographic identification, shall be provided to Department prior to inspection.
(Amended City Record 6/12/2018, eff. 1/1/2019)
(a) The Department shall charge fees for searches and transcripts as follows:
(1) For a search of two consecutive calendar years under one name and for issuance of a certified copy of a certificate of birth, death, or spontaneous termination of pregnancy, or a certification of birth or death, or a certification that the record cannot be found, the fee is $15.00 for each copy in accordance with § 4179 of the New York State Public Health Law.
(2) For each additional calendar year search, if applied for at the same time or within three months of the original request and if proof of payment for the basic search is submitted, the fee is $1;
(3) For a certified copy of the reverse side of a death certificate, or its electronic equivalent, issued at the same time as a copy of the face of the certificate, the fee is $2; and
(4) For a two calendar year search under one name for documents relating to transportation of human remains and the issuance of a certified copy of one side of a document, the fee is $3 and for each certified copy of an additional side, the fee is $1.50.
(b) Upon proper application by an authorized person, the Department shall exchange a certified copy of a birth or death certificate, or a certification that such a record cannot be found, for a certification of birth or death if the record can then be found. Upon proper application by an authorized person, the Department shall exchange a certification of birth or death, or a certification that such a record or a spontaneous termination of pregnancy certificate cannot be found, for a certified copy of a birth, spontaneous termination of pregnancy or death certificate if the record can then be found. Such exchanges shall be made without charge when application is made within three months of the issuance of the certification that a record cannot be found or of the certified copy or certification to be exchanged.
(c) When application for searches and issuance of transcripts is made by any agency of the government of the United States, a voucher for future payment of required fees may be accepted by the Department instead of immediate payment of fees.
(d) The Department shall make searches and issue certified copies, transcripts, corrections or disposition permits without charge when:
(1) Requested for official purposes by any agency of the City or State or of any other political subdivision of the State; or,
(2) Requested pursuant to the Civil Practice Law and Rules in connection with an application for benefits available from the Veterans Administration, if written proof of the application is first submitted; or,
(3) Requested in connection with applications for allowances for dependents of persons in the armed forces of the United States, in connection with an induction or enlistment into any armed force of the United States, or in connection with an application for a veterans' bonus pursuant to any law of the State, if written proof of the application, induction or enlistment is first submitted; or,
(4) Requested by an officer of the New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children for use in court cases; or,
(5) The Commissioner or the person in charge of the office of the Department designated to receive vital records, for good cause, so directs.
(e) The Department may verify information contained on birth, spontaneous termination of pregnancy or death certificates filed with the Department when such verification is requested by authorized users of the National Association for Public Health Statistics and Information Systems (NAPHSIS) Electronic Verification of Vital Events (EVVE) System who are foreign or domestic governments, agencies of the City or State of New York, benefit-paying parties such as annuity companies and pension plans that demonstrate a need for such information to determine whether the benefits they are paying should be terminated, a physician licensed to practice in the United States who demonstrates that such information is needed to determine whether a patient he or she is treating has died, a hospital that demonstrates that such information is needed to determine whether a patient it is treating has died or an attorney licensed to practice in the United States who demonstrates that the information is necessary to administer an estate.
(f) The Department shall charge an application fee of $40.00 to correct or amend birth or death certificates as follows, except there shall be no fee to correct a final disposition as a result of an interim disposition issued pursuant to 24 RCNY Health Code Article 205:
(1) Adding a given name more than 60 days after birth
(2) Correcting birth and death certificate errors and omissions made by family members and informants
(3) Correcting hospital birth certificate errors and omissions after 12 months
(4) Correcting funeral home errors
(5) Correcting funeral home omissions filed after 12 months
(6) Amending a birth certificate for an adoption
(7) Amending a birth certificate for a person to correct the gender marker on their birth certificate.
(8) Re-submitting an application more than 1 year after rejection.
(g) The Department shall charge a fee of $40.00 for disposition permits issued pursuant to 24 RCNY Health Code Article 205, except those for burials in the City cemetery or for interim dispositions.
(Amended City Record 3/25/2016, eff. 4/24/2016)
Registries of birth, termination of pregnancy or death, and permits required to be kept on file pursuant to 24 RCNY Health Code § 205.21, may be permanently preserved electronically, or through photostatic, microphotographic or microfilm copies, or such other preservation methods as may be approved by the department.
Every certificate of birth, termination of pregnancy and death, and every confidential medical report which is not filed electronically in accordance with other provisions of this Code shall be filled out legibly on typewriter or other device acceptable to the Department or with permanent black ink and shall be properly signed. No certificate or report shall be accepted which is imperfectly filled out, or on which a felt-tipped type of pen has been used, or if it has been corrected, interlined or altered in any manner.
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