Bill Text: HI HB991 | 2021 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Relating To The Disclosure Of Vital Statistics Records.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2021-07-07 - Act 199, on 07/06/2021 (Gov. Msg. No. 1327). [HB991 Detail]
Download: Hawaii-2021-HB991-Amended.html
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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES |
H.B. NO. |
991 |
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THIRTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2021 |
H.D. 2 |
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STATE OF HAWAII |
S.D. 2 |
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A BILL FOR AN ACT
RELATING TO THE DISCLOSURE OF VITAL STATISTICS RECORDS.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:
SECTION 1. The purpose
of this Act is to:
(1) Enable the department of health to disclose vital statistics records for
public health purposes; and
(2) Update the categories of those who may access otherwise confidential vital
statistics records.
SECTION 2.
Section 338-18, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:
"§338-18 Disclosure of records. (a) To
protect the integrity of vital statistics records, to ensure their proper use,
and to ensure the efficient and proper administration of the vital statistics
system, it shall be unlawful for any person to permit inspection of, or to
disclose information contained in vital statistics records, or to copy or issue
a copy of all or part of any [such] record, except as authorized by this
part or [by] in a manner consistent with rules adopted by
the department of health.
(b) The
department of health shall not permit inspection of public health
statistics records, or issue a certified copy of any [such] record or
part thereof, unless it is satisfied that the applicant has a direct and
tangible interest in the record. The
following persons or agencies shall be considered to have a direct and
tangible interest in a public health statistics record:
(1) The registrant;
(2) The spouse of the registrant;
(3) A parent of the registrant;
(4) A descendant of the registrant;
(5) A person having a common ancestor with the registrant;
(6) A legal guardian of the registrant;
(7) A person or agency acting on behalf of the registrant;
(8) A personal representative
or trustee of the registrant's estate[;] or trust;
(9) A person whose right to inspect or obtain a certified copy of the record is established by an order of a court of competent jurisdiction;
(10) Adoptive parents who have filed a petition for adoption and who need to determine the death of one or more of the prospective adopted child's natural or legal parents;
(11) A person who needs
to determine the marital status of a former spouse [in order] to
determine the payment of alimony;
(12) A person, agency,
or a beneficiary of a will or trust who needs to determine the death of a [nonrelated]
co-owner of property [purchased under a joint tenancy agreement; and
(13) A person who
needs a death certificate for the determination of payments under a credit
insurance policy.]; and
(13) A person or agency
who seeks access to vital statistics records for a public health purpose, as reviewed
by the department of health's institutional review committee and approved by the
director of health.
(c) The department of health may permit the
use [[]of[]] the data contained in public health [statistical]
statistics records for research purposes only, but no identifying use
thereof shall be made.
(d) Index data consisting of name and sex of the registrant, type of vital event, and such other data as the director may authorize shall be made available to the public.
(e) The department of health may permit
persons working on genealogy projects access to microfilm or other copies of
vital records of events that occurred more than [seventy-five] one hundred
fifteen years [prior to] before the current year.
[(f) Subject to this section, the department may
direct its local agents to make a return upon filing of birth, death, and fetal
death certificates with them, of certain data shown to federal, state,
territorial, county, or municipal agencies. Payment by these agencies for these services
may be made as the department shall direct.
(g)] (f) The department of health shall not
issue a verification in lieu of a certified copy of any [such] record,
or any part thereof, unless it is satisfied that the applicant requesting a
verification is:
(1) A person who has a direct and tangible interest in the record but requests a verification in lieu of a certified copy;
(2) A [governmental]
government agency that, for a legitimate government purpose, maintains
and needs to update official lists of persons in the ordinary course of the agency's
activities. Notwithstanding other
provisions of this section, upon request from a [governmental] government
agency of the State [of Hawaii] or its political subdivisions, the
department of health may further disclose to that [governmental] government
agency the date of the vital event that has been verified;
(3) A [governmental
agency, or] government, private, social, or educational agency or
organization that seeks confirmation of a certified copy of any [such]
record submitted in support of or information provided about a vital event relating
to any [such] record and contained in an official application made in
the ordinary course of the agency's or organization's activities by an
individual seeking employment with, entrance to, or the services or products of
the agency or organization;
(4) A private or
government attorney who seeks to confirm information about a vital event
relating to any [such] record that was acquired during the course of or
for purposes of legal proceedings; or
(5) An individual
employed, endorsed, or sponsored by a [governmental agency, or] government,
private, social, or educational agency or organization who seeks to confirm
information about a vital event relating to preparation of reports or
publications by the agency or organization for research or educational
purposes.
(g) For the purposes of this section, "research purposes" shall be limited to those purposes that have been reviewed by the department of health's institutional review committee and approved by the department of health's institutional review committee and the director of health."
SECTION 3. Section 338-18.5, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is repealed.
["[§338-18.5] Sharing of vital
statistics records with department of health program employees for approved
research purposes. (a) Notwithstanding section 338-18, the
department may disclose public health statistics records to persons who are employed
by department of health programs, acting within the scope of their employment,
who need to use a public health statistics record for research purposes, as
approved by the department of health's institutional review committee. Upon the institutional review committee's
approval, the department may disclose the following to department employees as
specified in this section:
(1) Names,
addresses, and contact information in the record for the purpose of contacting
persons identified in the record to request informed consent to use additional
specified information in the record.
Upon confirmation of informed consent, the additional specified
information in the record may be disclosed and used for approved research
purposes; and
(2) Information in
the record as approved by the institutional review committee without informed
consent of persons identified in the record; provided that the institutional
review committee:
(A) Identifies
the information in the record for which disclosure is sought;
(B) Determines
that obtaining informed consent is not practicable; and
(C) Determines
that there is a public health purpose for the approved research that
substantially outweighs the confidentiality interest of persons identified
in the record.
(c) Requirements for informed consent shall be
determined by the department's institutional review committee as part of its
approval of the research purposes for which the information in the record will
be disclosed and used.
(d) Information disclosed pursuant to this section
may only be re-disclosed:
(1) With
authorization from the institutional review committee; or
(2) If the record
has been redacted of identifying personal information.
(e) For the purposes of this section, "department"
means the department of health."]
SECTION 4.
Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.
SECTION 5. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.
Report Title:
Department of Health; Vital Statistics Records; Disclosure; Public Health
Description:
Authorizes the Department of Health to disclose vital statistics records for public health purposes. Updates eligibility requirements for access to confidential vital statistics records. (SD2)
The summary description
of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is
not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.
