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An Act To Require a Birth Certificate for a Stillborn Child
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  22 MRSA §2770  is enacted to read:
§ 2770. Birth certificate for stillbirth
In addition to the requirements of section 2841, the State Registrar of Vital Statistics shall establish a certificate of birth for a stillborn child. For purposes of this section, "stillborn child" means a fetus of 20 or more weeks of gestation that dies in the uterus or during labor and delivery.
 
1.  Certificate preparation and filing.   The certificate must meet all of the requirements of section 2761. The certificate must be offered to the parent or parents of the stillborn child, who may choose to include a name for the stillborn child on the certificate. The certificate must be filed with the State Registrar of Vital Statistics or with the clerk of the municipality in which the stillbirth occurred, pursuant to section 2761, within 3 days following the stillbirth and prior to cremation or removal of the stillborn child from the place of the stillbirth.
 
2.  Delayed registration of certificate.   If a birth certificate for a stillborn child has not been registered within one year of the stillbirth, the certificate may be filed but must be marked "Delayed Registration of Stillbirth" and registered in accordance with the delayed registration process described in section 2764.
 
SUMMARY
This bill creates a certificate of birth for a stillborn child. It requires that the certificate be prepared and filed in accordance with the requirements for certificates filed to register live births and that the certificate be offered to the parents, who may choose to include a name for the stillborn child on the certificate. It requires the certificate to be filed within 3 days of the stillbirth and prior to cremation or removal of the stillborn child from the place of the stillbirth. If a certificate has not been registered within a year of the stillbirth, it still may be filed but must be marked "Delayed Registration of Stillbirth" and registered in accordance with the requirements for the delayed registration of a certificate for live birth.