Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1938-03-24
Birth Registration
Campaign Will Be
Initiated Shortly
Certificate, One-Time Luxury,
Now Termed Absolute
Necessity For Child

A Birth Registration Campaign has
been announced for Montgomery
County by DR.. V. L. Ellicott, Deputy
State Health Officer. The local cam
paign is part of a statewide project
recently initiated by DR.. R. H. Riley,
Director of the State Department of
Health. In announcing the campaign,
DIR. Riley said:
"The births of about a thousand
Maryland babies still escape registra-
ton each year. This situation is seri-
Gus. In Montgomery County tests in
dictate that about Is births per year
are unregistered.
"In the past, the birth certificate
was something of luxury; today it
is an absolute necessity for every
child. The birth record is usually re-
quired on entrance to school; as a
basis of work permit; for passports;
for relief or pension purposes and in
hundreds of other situations. Recently
even music conservatory demanded
birth certificates in contest. Young
people sometimes lose opportunity for
jobs because they cannot prove their
age promptly enough. There are even
instances on record where a boy was
drafted into a foreign army because
he had no American birth certificate.
"The reasons for incomplete regis
tration", continued DIR. Riley, "are
humorous. Some babies are born with
out physician or midwife in at
tendance, and the parents do not re-
alize that, in such cases, they must
themselves report the birth to a regis
trar or to the County Health Officer.
In other cases the physician mis-
takenly assumed that another physi-
clan, or midwife, or hospital has
reported the birth. In still other
cases busy attendant may delay the
report possibly waiting for the par
ents to select the child's name. Ere
quently delayed reports are forgotten
entirely. Finally, in some instances,
the birth is reported, but the name,
birth date, or even the sex is given
incorrectly, So that the birth certif-
cate cannot be located among the hun
dreds of thousands on file at the State
office.
"In order to ensure every Maryland
child of his birthright, Statewide
Birth Registration Campaign has been
begun. There will be two principal
phases: (a) for physicians, midwives,
and registrars, who must make out
and file the birth certificates; and (b)
for the general public, which is called
upon to cooperate.
"The physicians, midwives, and reg
istrars will be asked to use the great
est vigilance to ensure that every
birth is registered promptly, accurate
ly. and legibly. Parents, public health
nurses, welfare workers, clergymen,
mail carriers, school children, and
others are asked to report to the local
registrar or to the County Health
Officer ANY birth not attended by a
physician or midwife. Parents are
also requested to notify the County or
State Registrar if birth registra-
ton notice is not received from the
State Registrar by the end of the
month following the birth month. In
other words, child born during any
day of March should normally receive
his registration notice by the end of
April. (Some time is necessary con-
sumed in transmitting certificates to
the State Office and in checking for
completeness, etc.,"