**Updates to Death Specifications**

**(Version 8/23/2002)**

**Additions:**

Specifications for items: Linking information (birth certificate number,
state of birth, year of birth), Void flag, Certificate Number, Auxiliary
State file number, Source flag, Receipt date, and Father's surname.

Appendix G - Hispanic Origin Look-up Table

Appendix I - Race Codes

**General modifications:**

Alphabetic codes have been modified so that "unknown" is consistently
represented by "U," and "not applicable" by "X."

Numeric codes have been modified so that "unknown" is represented by
"9(s)," and "not applicable" codes by "8(s)."

**Changes to geographic items:**

The geographic items were modified and distributed earlier (version
dated 4/3/02).

The specifications for these items were corrected for differences in
geographic coding between the birth and death specifications. U.S.
States and Territories codes were changed from numeric to alpha (FIPS
6-4). This change is consistent with HISSB geographic coding standards
and permitted Canadian Provinces (and Territories) to be treated as U.S.
State equivalents for the purpose of coding residency. Notes were also
added to geographic code appendices indicating that they will be
superseded by the revised Part 8 (NCHS Geographic Coding Manual) upon
its release later this year.

A minor change has been made to this current of the specification \--
all

references to ISO 3166 were removed and replaced with FIPS 10-4.

Medical file (only) items:

Instructions were added to additional items that outputs from the EDR
can interface with NCHS mortality medical software (e.g., SuperMICAR)
using input file record format from NCHS. Specific items do not need to
be transmitted separately if the information has been fed through the
automated software and the output files have been transmitted to NCHS.

**Specific changes:** (The updated information is in **bold**.)

Item 1, page 8. Notes on transmission changed to make NDI searches
consistent with current practice:

> Insert "Baby Boy" or "Baby Girl" as the first name for infants with a
> blank field for first name.

Alias flag values of 1-8 should be converted to 1 (alias). Alias flags
of 0 and 9 should be converted to 0.

Item 14, pages 2-3. Added value 9 (Unknown) for records (probably only
paper) submitted with no response.

Items 24&25, pages 4-5. Added value for unknown dates and time (probably
only paper); added instruction for States to convert times of 2400 to
0000; and removed instruction to transmit this data to NCHS.

Items 29&30: Added values for unknown dates and time (probably only
paper) and added instruction for States to convert times of 2400 to
0000.

On page 5: Changed range from 0000-2400 to **0000-2359**.

Items 33&34: Added values for unknown autopsy information (probably only
paper) and expanded logic of valid values to include unknown values.

On page 3. If item 33 is Y, item 34 must be Y, N, or **U.**

**If item 33 is U, item 34 must be U.**

Items 37&45. For States with laws allowing unconventional types of
people certify cause of death ONLY, we have added an additional category
**Other Individual Legally Allowed to Certify,** an additional literal
field for capturing the other types of individuals, and suggested a
certification statement for these types.

Increase length of CERTL to 30 to be consistent with layout.

Items 38&39, page 6. Changed TOI transmission range from 0000-2400 to
**0000-2359** and added instruction for States to convert time values of
2400 to 0000.

Item 40. Removed the coded values, the transmission variable with codes,
and the associated Appendix since this will done using automated
software.

Item 43. Removed material on coding activity and the associated Appendix
since this will be done using automated software.

Item 44. Changed values for TRANSP to be consistent with layout.

Item 54&55. Changed statement from data will not be transmitted to
transmission is optional.

Appendix E. Place of injury. Deleted.

Appendix F. Detailed activities. Deleted.