Maine Legislature, Session 121, LD 0351
Committee Amendment CA_A_S24 (Senate)
Amends: 22 MRSA §2842, 22 MRSA §2845

COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "A" to S.P. 127, L.D. 351, 
Act To Promote Clarity Regarding Death Certificates" 
Bill, "An 
Amend the bill by striking out everything after the title 
and before the summary and inserting in its place the following: 
'Emergency preamble. Whereas, Acts of the Legislature do not 
become effective until 90 days after adjournment unless enacted 
as emergencies; and 
Whereas, current law requires that a death certificate be 
completed in typewritten or handwritten block style; and 
Whereas, death certificates have been rejected for filing 
because they were completed by hand without meeting the strict 
requirements of "block style"; and 
Whereas, death certificates should be accepted for filing if 
they are completed in a hand-printed style that is legible; and 
Whereas, in the judgment of the Legislature, these facts 
create an emergency within the meaning of the Constitution of 
Maine 
and 
require 
the 
following 
legislation 
as 
immediately 
necessary for the preservation of the public peace, health and 
safety; now, therefore, 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 22 MRS A §2842, sub-§2, as amended by PL 2001, c. 574, 
§26, is further amended to read: 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
t\,O&. 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "A" to S.P. 127, L.D. 351 
2. 
Medical 
certificate 
by 
physician. 
The 
medical 
certification of 
the 
cause 
of 
death 
must 
be 
completed 
in 
typewritten or 
aaBawFj,.t-~&-Blee* legibly hand-printed style and 
signed in a timely fashion by a physician authorized to practice 
in the State who has knowledge of the patient I s recent medical 
condition, in accordance with department regulations and other 
laws detailing who can certify and in what time frame, except 
when 
the death falls under 
the 
jurisdiction of the medical 
examiner as provided in section 3025. 
If the patient was 
a 
resident of a nursing home licensed under section 1817 at the 
time of death and if the physician in charge of the patient IS 
care or another physician designated by the physician in charge 
had not examined the patient within 48 hours prior to death, or 
within 2 weeks prior to death in the case of a terminally ill 
patient, the physician in charge or another physician designated 
by the physician in charge shall examine the body prior to 
completing the certification of death process. 
Any physician who 
fails to complete the medical certification of the cause of death 
fully, in typewritten or 
aaBawFj,.t-~&-Blee* legibly hand-printed 
style and in a timely manner, or who fails to examine the body of 
a nursing home resident prior to certifying cause of death as 
required by this section must 
be 
reported to 
the 
Board of 
Licensure in Medicine or the Board of Osteopathic Licensure, 
whichever 
is 
appropriate, 
by 
the 
State 
Registrar 
of Vital 
Statistics of the Department of Human Services. 
For the purposes of this subsection, the following terms have the 
following meanings. 
A. 
"Life-sustaining procedure" means any medical procedure 
or 
intervention that, 
when 
administered to 
a 
qualified 
patient, will serve only to prolong the dying process and 
does not include nutrition and hydration. 
B. 
"Terminally ill patient" means a patient who has been 
diagnosed as having an incurable or irreversible condition 
that, 
without 
the 
administration 
of 
life-sustaining 
procedures, will, in the opinion of the attending physician, 
result in death within a short time. 
Sec. 2. 22 MRSA §2842, sub-§3, as amended by PL 2001, c. 574, 
§27, is further amended to read: 
3. 
Medical certificate by medical examiner. 
When a death 
occurs under circumstances that make it a medical examiner case 
as defined in section 3025, or when inquiry as to the cause of 
death is required by law, the medical examiner shall complete in 
typewritten or 
aaBawFj,.t-~&-BJ.ee* legibly hand-printed style the 
medical certification of the cause of death and sign the death 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
R.da 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "0" to S.P. 127, L.D. 351 
certificate. 
A certification need not be completed before the 
remains are ready for release. 
The medical examiner is responsible for the identity of the 
deceased 
and 
the 
time, 
date, 
place, 
cause, 
manner 
and 
circumstances of death on the death certificate. 
Entries may be 
left "pending" if further study is needed; or, at the specific 
direction 
of 
the 
Attorney 
General 
relative 
to 
cases 
under 
investigation by the Attorney General's office, entries must be 
left "withheld" until such time as the Attorney General, in the 
Attorney General's sole discretion, determines that any criminal 
investigation 
and 
prosecution will 
not 
be 
harmed 
by public 
disclosure of such information. 
Notwithstanding section 2706, 
subsection 4, unless directed otherwise by the Attorney General 
as specified in this subsection, this information for which the 
medical examiner is responsible may be made available to the 
general public by the Office of Chief Medical Examiner. 
Sec. 3. 22 MRSA §2845, as amended by PL 2001, c. 574, §30, is 
further amended to read: 
§2845. Certificate of death typewritten or hand printed 
Any death certificate required to be filed by this chapter 
must be typewritten or aaBElwEit.t.eB--i-a--N-e-€-k--t;YFe legibly hand 
printed prior to such filing. 
Emergency clause. 
In view of the emergency cited in the 
preamble, this Act takes effect when approved.' 
SUMMARY 
This amendment replaces the bill. 
This 
amendment 
revises 
current 
law 
to 
allow 
a 
death 
certificate to be completed using legible hand printing, without 
requiring the hand printing to be in block style. 
The emergency preamble is changed to reflect these changes. 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT