Directs the department of health to establish a certificate of birth resulting in stillbirth

Section 2: Adds a new Public Health Law section 4160-a to establish a new Certificate of Birth Resulting in Stillbirth. This provision outlines the criteria needed for such a certificate to be issued, the contents and license fee for such certificate, and those who are eligible to receive such a Certificate of Birth Resulting in Stillbirth. Such Certificate of Birth Resulting in Stillbirth shall include such appropriate information as shall be determined by the department and shall be on a form established by the department which is similar, as applicable, to the form of a certificate prescribed by section forty-one hundred thirty of this article relating to a live birth.

Existing law

There is currently no certificate of birth resulting in stillbirth. The certificates issued by the Department of Health include live birth, death, and fetal death.

Justification

A Certificate of Birth Resulting in Stillbirth would help to bring closure to those who have endured the trauma of stillbirth by giving them an official state registered certificate. Mothers who give birth to a stillborn fetus have little validation of their "motherhood" or the fact that they carried a fetus close to term or to term. A Certificate of Birth Resulting in Stillbirth would provide grieving parents, who must leave the hospital without a living child, the same consideration and respect given to parents leaving the hospital with an infant in their arms. Regardless of the outcome, both sets of parents endured the same birthing process.

There are approximately 30,000 stillbirths that occur in the United States each year. The number of stillbirths is greater than all infant deaths combined. In fact, eight times as many babies are stillborn when compared to the number of babies that die of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). It was estimated that SIDS claimed 22 children in New York State in 2004, while during the same period of time 1,784 infants were stillborn. Over 50% of stillbirths occur due to an "undeterminable medical reason". Further, a majority of such stillbirths occur near or at full term. Stillbirth occurrences have no socioeconomic, age, race, lifestyle, or behavioral indicators.

The only official government document or acknowledgment of a stillbirth is a certificate of fetal death. Under current law, there is no official recognition to parents that there was a birth. Under this bill, a Certificate of Birth Resulting in Stillbirth would be issued by the State of New York, upon the request of a grieving parent. Such document would provide recognition of the birth, and if requested by the parents, a name of the child would be duly recorded.

Nothing in this bill is intended to subject physicians, other health care providers, or hospitals to any undue burden. Hospitals should designate the appropriate person on the hospital staff to inform parents of the availability of such certificate and the process for requesting them. Written materials for the purposes of informing parents could be developed by the Health Department for use by hospital personnel. Some stillbirth bills have raised controversy among some because they referred to the fetus as an unborn child. The text of this bill does not use any such language.

It is the hope of this bill's sponsors that creating a Certificate of Birth Resulting in Stillbirth will help to increase awareness of the occurrence of stillbirth in this country. Further, that it will encourage the pursuit of more medical research to help curtail the incidence of stillbirths.

Legislative history

This bill is similar to S.57-A of 2005/2006, S.186-A of 2007/2008

Local fiscal implications

None.

Effective date

One hundred eightieth day after it shall have become law.