Transforming the Massachusetts 
Death Certificate Process
Vitals Information Partnership (V.I.P.)
EDRS Overview Webinar for Clerks and Clerk Burial Agents
July 2014
Agenda
•	Changes to the Process
•	Enrollment
•	Demonstration
•	Next Steps
•	Questions
Changes to Death Certificate
•	Death Certificate Changes coming on September 1, 2014 to comply with 2003 federal standards
–	Three new data items added in medical portion of death certificate: 
•	Pregnancy status at time of death
•	Transportation injury question
•	Tobacco question
–	New forms take the place of current paper death certificate
–	Most medical certifiers will fill out a new form, Death Certificate Certifier Worksheet, instead of their portion of the paper death certificate, unless they have an account

Changes to Process
•	Pre September 1, 2014 data will not be entered into the EDRS
•	No earlier than 2014 legacy data entered into EDRS. If older record on paper needs to be amended, amend on paper
•	Secure, online processing enabled 
•	New fields and data rules comply with federal guidelines
•	The online workflow is similar to the current paper process 
•	Registration and amendment navigation for death records is the similar to the Birth Module
•	If the clerk is the burial agent, clerks can be set up to perform the burial agent role which will not require a new login account
Changes to Process Workflow
•	Death records will be processed electronically and ‘sent’ to the next person in the process instead of providing the paper in person
•	Clerks will find records that require registration in your online ‘To Do’ list, called a work queue, just as in births
•	The VIP will allow you to review the record, register it and print archival and certified copies
•	Amendments will also be performed by the clerk of occurrence
EDRS Simplified Workflow
Changes to Process - Permits
•	Funeral Directors will be able to print the permit from their offices when the permit is ready to print
•	The Burial Agent determines when the permit is ready to print. The permit is ready to print when the date issued and permit number have been assigned
•	The EDRS will offer communities a different timing option for printing burial permits to accommodate different off hours printing needs
–	If the community “opts-in” to this option, funeral directors will be able to print an ‘ePermit’ from EDRS as soon as the record is released to the burial agent for review
–	These records will have already been validated by the system for completeness and consistency prior to release to the burial agent

Changes to Process - Permits
•	With either option, the system requires the burial agent to review the record and issue the permit number before releasing the record to the clerk for registration
–	E-permits issued prior to review will contain a state tracking number only; those issued after review will also contain a local permit number
•	Permits can be printed from the EDRS by either the burial agent or the funeral director. 
–	Except in rare cases, funeral directors will not need to drive to the burial agent to obtain the permit
–	Off-hours issuance may occur using the EDRS if the burial agent designees have accounts, or if the community “opts-in”
•	The timing of issuance and release for registration is at the discretion of the burial agent

Simplified EDRS Process
Permit Printing Options Opt-In

Permit Payment Questions
–	The VIP will not have an integrated electronic payment option
–	The method for collecting fees, if any, is up to the City/Town
•	Jim Imprescia, Manager of the Boston Public Health Commission’s Burial Permit Office, has been working with the State Comptroller’s Office and Hewlett Packard to support the credit card and debit account payment processing for burial permits outside of EDRS 
•	Cities and towns can use the state blanket contract to implement the system for no cost. The vendor will assess a small transaction fee for each payment
•	Jim would be happy to offer a demo for those interested and discuss what is involved in getting it set-up for your city or town. Email Jim Imprescia at JImprescia@bphc.org

Permit Printing and Payment Options
–	The strategies used are the jurisdiction of the municipality, but these suggestions may be considered
–	Possible Off Hours Printing Strategies -- Opt-In
•	Funeral Directors can print ePermits for all records  as soon as released to burial agent
•	Burial Agent review record on next available business day
•	If fees are collected, use one of the below strategies or another payment strategy
–	Possible Off Hours Printing Strategies -- Opt Out
•	Online: Designate additional burial agents for the municipality who will be available in the off hours
•	Offline: Use current off hours permitting strategy i.e., paper booklets and enter the information into the EDRS next available business day
–	Possible Payment Collection we have heard about include:
•	Work with Boston to use the online payment strategy
•	Use prepaid vouchers
•	Set up a PayPal account for online payments
•	Withhold record from registration until payment is processed

Enrollment
•	Existing clerk VIP users will have access to the death functionality
•	If you have staff that does not have a birth account, but needs an account for deaths, you will need to submit a VIP User Agreement Form and a User Request Form (URF) to the VIP
•	If you also issue burial permits, you will need to submit additional forms associated with the burial agent role

Burial Agent Users in VIP
•	The agent in charge of issuing burial permits in your municipality, must have a VIP account
–	This is often either the Board of Health or the City or Town Clerk
•	Office staff and other designated issuers may also have accounts
–	There is only one role for a burial agent on the URF
–	This means all burial agent users will have the same access to functionality in VIP. Privileges cannot be turned on or off
•	(Off hours) Permit issuance must be considered
–	All who will issue online, will need an individual user account
–	Accounts cannot be shared!

VG/VIP Agreements
•	There are five different agreements: 3 paper, 2 electronic 
•	PAPER: 
–	Submit the original, signed paper for the VG Services Agreement, Access Administrator form and VIP User Confidentiality Agreement
–	Mail the signed paper forms to the address below which is different from the address on the forms
Registry of Vital Records and Statistics
ATTN: VIP Enrollment Forms
150 Mt. Vernon Street, 1st Floor
Boston, MA  02125-3105
•	ELECTRONIC: 
–	The Access Administrator submits the URF and the Sub Org Request form, if applicable, by email
–	Email the electronic form to vip@state.ma.us
–	Complete processing time for user accounts is 3 - 4 weeks
–	Forms needed depend on a number of variables
Required Agreements (see Matrix)
•	If the Clerk is the primary Burial Agent
–	Submit a letter designating the clerk as the primary burial agent for the city or town from the Board of Health
•	If your City/Town does not have a Board of Health, contact RVRS
–	Submit a Sub Org request form, if the Board of Health does not already have a VG Account
–	Submit a URF requesting the clerk and desired staff as burial agent users
–	Submit new VIP User Agreements for those who do not have accounts

Required Agreements cont.
•	If the Board of Health is the primary Burial Agent and does not have a VG Account Already
–	Submit a VG Services Agreement 
–	Submit an Access Administrator form
–	Submit VIP User Agreements for those who will issue electronic permits
–	Submit a URF requesting desired staff as burial agent users. In addition, you may also request existing users such as the clerk and/or funeral directors (are) be  granted burial agent roles, if desired.

Required Agreements, cont.
•	If the Board of Health is the primary Burial Agent and does have a VG Account 
–	Submit an Access Administrator Form if you want an additional access administrator
–	Submit VIP User Agreements for those who do not have user accounts
–	Submit a URF requesting desired staff as burial agent users. In addition, you may also request existing users such as the clerk and/or funeral directors (are) be  granted burial agent roles, if desired.
–	If enrollment forms are not received in time to obtain accounts, the clerk will be given EDRS burial agent privileges until the BOH account is created

Top 4 Questions
•	How do I know if the Board of Health or I should submit the VG Services Agreement forms?
–	The Board of Health should submit the form in most cases
–	If the Board of Health does not issue burial permits and has designated that function to the clerk, then the clerk should submit the paperwork
•	Will I need to submit original evidence to the RVRS on paper? 
–	For Registration: No, unless there is unusual evidence such as a court order
•	Most other documents will already have been faxed into the system
–	For Amendments: Yes, most evidence will be sent to the RVRS

Top 4 Questions, cont.
•	What is the training plan for clerks?
–	Live sessions at conferences 
–	Sessions will become more detailed as final software becomes available
–	Webinar training sessions ongoing
–	eLearning Modules
–	Training Documentation
•	Will there be a blank, paper death certificate for use in an emergency? 
–	Yes, PDFs will be available for unplanned VIP system downtime
–	Paper Death Certificates will be available on an emergency basis where no electricity is available

Quick Steps
•	Issue Burial Permit
•	Register a record
•	Amend a death record
•	Register an amendment

Issue a Burial Permit
•	Review record
•	Enter Date Issued
•	Enter Permit Number
•	Enter Additional Comments, if desired
•	Release the record to the clerk for registration
Register a Death Record
•	Review record
•	Ready to Register = Yes
•	Select Clerk
•	Registration Number
•	Registration Date
•	Save
Register Amendments
•	1st Steps: same as registering a death record
•	Enter Deposition # (or --- if none) and Amendment date

Questions for VIP?
•	Email any question to the VIP Project Team mailbox: vip@state.ma.us
•	Ask for a return call if you need to talk to someone
•	Check our Website: http://www.mass.gov/dph/vip