SB 850 - certificate of still birth

[dja]

I received my certificate today - about 4 weeks to get it. I'm very pleased - it looks a lot like my son's birth certificate, but says "certifiate of still birth" on the top. It was nice to finally do this, after following the process the legislation went through and even speaking at a committee hearing.

[mrs.magdaleno]

I'm definitely going to send for mine tomorrow. Thanks for the info.

[dja]

Thanks for the update! I just went to the State Office of Vital Records web site, filled out the simple form, and I'm mailing it in with the fee tomorrow. I was glad to see that certificates of still birth are set forth on the web site as one of the documents a person can get.

[rosalinda]

I received my certificates this past friday, a lot sooner than I had expected.

[rosalinda]

Okay, I found out that for stillbirths prior to January 2008, you have to mail in your certificate request to the State Office of Vital Records with a fee of $20 per copy requested. I mailed in my form today, let's see how long it takes to get my certificates in the mail....[?]

[rosalinda]

I got the application today and will hopefully take it in soon. The fee is $9 per certificate.

[dja]

I just wanted to update this to remind our California group that you can now request the Certificate of Still Birth from your county office of vital statistics (the same place you go to get a marriage license). If anyone does do this, please post and let us know. I will probably give it a shot sometime next month.

[dja]

I'm not entirely sure about the process. I think the bill becomes law as of January, but I need to check that. I think the process will involve going to the county vital statistics office in the county where your child's fetal death is registered, and then asking for the certificate of still birth. There will be a small fee to cover the cost, and I know that it will be necessary for the county to confirm you qualify by verifying the registration of fetal death. It may be difficult at first to get one, since the counties won't necessarily have a certificate developed right away. It might make sense to take a copy of the SB 850 bill along - you can get it off of www.leginfo.ca.gov. I have to do a delayed registration of fetal death for Amelia first, so I figure it may take months before I can get a certificate of still birth. Good luck!

[rosalinda]

So if I wanted a certificate of stillbirth, what exactly would I have to do to get one? and how soon? (as I run out my door....[xx(])

[dja]

Hi there. The Governor signed this bill, the Missing Angels Act, on 10/13/07. As far as I know, the signed version still provides for a certificate of still birth for any baby that has reached 20 weeks gestation, upon request by the parents. I will have to have a fetal death certificate issued retroactively, then I'll be able to get a certificate of still birth for Amelia. Any parent who has a fetal death certificate for their baby can get a certificate of still birth on request and upon paying a small fee.