37.8.801    DEATH CERTIFICATE

(1) A certificate of death for each death that occurs in Montana must be completed and filed using either a current Montana certificate of death form or Montana's Electronic Death Registration System.

(2) Death certificate forms may be obtained from the department or printed using commercial computer software that produces the approved form.

(3) The person in charge of the final disposition of the dead body must present the death certificate to the physician, advanced practice registered nurse, or coroner for cause of death certification within three working days after being notified of the death or receiving the authorization for removal, transportation, and final disposition of a dead body, which ever occurs first.

(4) The certifying physician, advanced practice registered nurse, or coroner must complete and return the death certificate to the person in charge of the final disposition of the body within 48 hours of receipt. If the cause of death certification is pending results, then the cause of death must be listed as "pending." When the final results are received, they must be sent to the department using a correction affidavit.

(5) The certifying physician, advanced practice registered nurse, or coroner may only certify and amend the date of death, time of death, place of death, or cause of death data. A certifying physician, advanced practice registered nurse, or coroner aware of errors in the demographic data must notify the person in charge of final disposition of the body of any errors.

(6) For the purpose of the death certificate, any professional registered nurse licensed by the state of Montana may provide pronouncement of death information.

(7) The person in charge of final disposition of a body may only certify the demographic data on the death certificate. The person in charge of final disposition of a body aware of errors in the cause of death data must notify the certifying physician or coroner of the error.

(8) Within ten calendar days after the date of the death or the date it was first discovered, the person in charge of final disposition of a body must file a properly completed death certificate with the local registrar of the county where the death occurred.

History: 50-15-102, 50-15-103, 50-15-403, MCA; IMP, 50-15-109, 50-15-124, 50-15-403, 50-15-405, MCA; Eff. 12/31/72; AMD, 1977 MAR p. 124, Eff. 7/26/77; AMD, 1981 MAR p. 1188, Eff. 10/16/81; AMD, 1987 MAR p. 1481, Eff. 8/28/87; AMD, 1993 MAR p. 3023, Eff. 1/1/94; TRANS, from DHES, 1997 MAR p. 1460; AMD, 2002 MAR p. 397, Eff. 2/15/02; AMD, 2008 MAR p. 169, Eff. 1/1/08; AMD, 2015 MAR p. 1492, Eff. 9/25/15.