This site is maintained by the Ohio Department of Health, Office of Vital Statistics (ODH/VS) for business partners. External public customers with VS questions or interest in purchasing certified copies should contact ODH/VS customer service at (614) 466-2531 or reference the ODH website at http://www.odh.ohio.gov/vitalstatistics/vitalstats.aspx .

Business partners should reference this site for varied types of information related to the registration of vital records, such as user registration forms and procedure manuals. Should you experience a problem while navigating the Support Site, please use the Site Feedback link at the bottom of the page. Should you have a procedural question or experience a problem while using the IPHIS-EDRS application,  call our HelpDesk at (614) 466-2531 (option 3).  The HelpDesk is available Monday-Friday from 8:00 AM-5:00 PM. 

Local VS Offices and related staff:  In the event you have IT equipment for salvage, please click here to fill out the Surplus Property Turn-in Document and fax it upon completion to your field service representative @ 614-387-1291 who will subsequently coordinate with OMIS to facilitate the retrieval of the equipment via the salvage company.  Please adhere to the following instructions when completing the document:

FROM- this should be the Ohio Department of Health address @ 246 North High Street, Columbus, OH  43216

EXTERNAL CUSTOMER must fill out the following form details:

a.  contact person - include ODH External Customer Name/Company who will work with TechDisposal to establish pickup date/time  

b.  phone number - ODH External Customer

c.  email address - ODH External Customer

d.  QTY - quantity (#)

e.  CONDITION - G: good, F: fair, P: poor, X: broken/non-repairable

f.  DESCRIPTION - include make/model (example:  Dell Optiplex GX260; 15 inch flat panel monitor)

g.  serial number - located in several places to include back, front, top, side, and bottom

h.  asset tag number - this is Ohio Department of Health's Asset Tag Number ie. EDHXXXXXX

Lighthouse Solutions Group will notify the Releasing Authority (contact person listed on State Surplus Property Turn-In Document) to set up date and time for retrieval of equipment.  At this time they will also have several questions to include location, special arrangements and the like.

Local and Deputy Registrars:  Should you receive a request for data from a local governmental agency, you can fulfill that request directly with your local VS data or other files shared on this Support Site.  You should log those requests on the “Log of Public Records Requests”.   This log should be available to your VS Field Service Representative during your annual site visit.  

Should you receive a request from a non-governmental agency (including attorneys, churches, private veteran organizations, etc.) for state level data, such as the decedent reports on this website, you should refer the requestor to the ODH HelpDesk to make the request directly to ODH.  We will fulfill the public record request directly. 

To access the contact information as submitted by specific funeral homes, visit the Ohio Funeral Directors Association website at www.ofdaonline.org and click on the left side of the page "Find a member". You can search by city and/or name to find the address and phone number of local business partners. For coroners, visit the Ohio Coroners Association website at www.osca.net/ohio_coroners.php

Local and Deputy Registrars: Please use the web reporting form to report total sales of certified copies from your district.  Based on your report, invoices will be generated from our Office of Financial Affairs. Please return a copy of your invoice with payment. Web reports are due January 5.

The Quarterly Summary of Sales Form is also available through the left main menu under "Local Registrar, Forms". The optional paper form can be used to seek local Board of Health approval for payment of fees prior to receiving an ODH generated invoice, which are generated from data submitted via the web reporting form.  Click here to review a memo from ODH/VS regarding the quarterly fee reporting requirements.  

WHAT TO DO WHEN...  Funeral Directors, Local Registrars:  In the event an error is found on a recently filed death record and that error is one not preferred by the family to be changed by affidavit or supplemental, it is possible we at the HelpDesk can initiate the rejection of said death record for correction entry and subsequent reprint.  Before a rejection can be considered, we must hear from the local registrar who filed the death record and be given a situational reason for the rejection request.  If, at this point, the rejection is deemed warranted, we will ask that all issued certifieds be retrieved.  We cannot reject any record until the certifieds are retrieved and in hand at the local office.  Once we are contacted regarding the retrievals, we will reject the record to the funeral home for correction of noted entries and for them to reprint/resubmit to applicable certifier for signage.

Below is a recap of event order applicable to the most common situation we see regarding rejection requests:

1.  Funeral Home contacts Local Registrar of intent to have record rejected.

2.  Registrar contacts HelpDesk.

3.  HelpDesk agent warrants rejection and asks certifieds be retrieved.

4.  Registrar contacts HelpDesk of certifieds' retrieval.

5.  HelpDesk agent rejects record for correction, reprint, and presentation for signage to certifier.

6.  Acts of correction, reprint, and signage are completed and record is presented to Registrar for filing.

7.  Retrieved certifieds are destroyed upon filing of corrected death record.

Please note that the certifier sign date must still descend sequentially with date of burial permit issued.

Please note that the record will keep the local registrar number assigned at first filing.

Please note that this process is not the preferred process in any case where a supplemental or affidavit can be facilitated with little or no impact to the family.  These instructions are meant to clarify the process, not to promote it as a replacement process for other EDRS options.

If you have inquiries at any point in this process, do not hesitate to call the HelpDesk at 614-466-2531 ( option 3 )

For local VS offices: Only birth affidavits should be faxed to ODH for approval before filing according to the affidavit review policy; do not fax death affidavits, legal name changes or other forms through the fax number. Make sure all local VS staff review the documents and maintain a copy of the quick reference guide. Should an issue arise regarding an affidavit correction in IPHIS, continue to communicate with the Special Reg Unit regarding the record as opposed to involving several units who might not have all the information about the record history.

For local VS offices: Death data back to 1954 has been loaded into EDRS. LHD'S should now be able to view data for their district, but cannot see images or issue copies from EDRS at this time. Discussions have begun regarding possible access for issuance from EDRS. Birth/death matching has begun in IPHIS/EDRS. You should begin to see "Deceased" watermarks appearing on matched birth records. The matching information can be found on the "flags" tab. If a birth record was incorrectly matched or not matched and it should be, please submit the request via HelpSTAR as an abstract error.

Numerous registrars attended the October 25, 2011 meeting of the LDAC.  Please review the following talking points, which were discussed with the ODH/VS team at the meeting:

1. LHD's can currently accept death certificates for filing when the funeral home has created a certificate and has sent it to a physician for assigning cause of death and signature using a PDF attachment.  This is an optional method for the funeral home to send certificates to physician offices.  The physician should print the certificate, complete and sign.  At this time, ODH/VS has not approved a PDF process for the physician to return a signed death certificate back to the funeral home.  Please be aware that ODH/VS is in discussions to create a policy to permit physician offices to return a signed certificate to the funeral home electronically, but this has not been finalized.  When the policy and process have been finalized, ODH/VS will lead a training effort for physicians, funeral homes and LHD's.  Remember, current filing procedures for LHD's have not changed and LHD's should still be verifying the death certificates they are filing are the proper size and legible.
2. Approximately 30 years of death data has been loaded into EDRS.  LHD’s should now be able to view the data for their district, but images are not accessible.  Discussions have begun regarding possible access to images for issuance from EDRS in the future. 
3. Abstract errors are still being resolved within a 15 minute turnaround time by the VS HelpDesk.  Please define if a customer is waiting in the subject field of HelpSTAR, so that attention can be directed to time sensitive requests. The “SA” indicator is not necessary, instead use: “2011012345 waiting” or “2011012345 mailed in” for the subject field.  This will ensure our HelpDesk staff can direct their attention to the most urgent call or HelpSTAR request.  The memo should contain the child’s name, date of birth, and what the field(s) should be corrected to.
4. The local entry of cause of death data is still valuable for fast registration of death certificates.  Should you have questions, email suzie.grayson@odh.ohio.gov
5. A grant from the Ohio Perinatal Quality Collaborative (OPQC) was awarded to ODH for the review of birthing facilities.  Staff and contractors will coordinate the review of 96 facilities in Ohio over the next three years in order to improve accurate data collection.  Local registrars will be notified when an area facility is scheduled, and will be welcomed to attend.  Key indicators to be reviewed include gestational age, birth weight, diabetes, prenatal visits, etc. 
6. The Ohio Public Health Assn. (OPHA) conference presented a good overview of the vital statistics model law and data analysis at ODH.  It included an interesting spotlight on LHD’s, some of which explained their success at coordinating events for certificates prepaid in bulk by veterans affairs, JFS, etc. 
7. Reminders will be mailed regarding the new affidavit review policy, such as always complete and notarize the form before faxing.  Make sure all VS staff review the documents and print a few copies of the quick reference guide to keep handy. 
8. County boards of elections can fax decedent queries to ODH if they cannot confirm a death using the monthly decedent reports. 
9. Please accept this general reminder to keep your emergency contact listings up to date within your office, the state registrar directory, emergency response plans, etc. 

Local VS Offices and related staff:  Pursuant to the affidavit training that was offered and conducted by our Field Service Office regarding the new affidavit guidelines which became effective 10/3/2011, please make note and use of the following links:  Click here to review and print a quick reference chart to be kept at the VS counter.  Click here to review and reference a comprehensive procedure guide that will answer many of your anticipated questions.  Click here to view the presentation shown during the live meeting sessions.

Click here to view and then save and/or print the Fax Cover Sheet For Affidavits which one should format with information pertaining to location.  This sheet will be used to fax the initiated affidavits for approval as outlined in the process effective 10/3/2011. 

Also, any person with access to IPHIS for the purpose of issuing certified copies should complete the new Affidavit Training Test.  Each office should challenge itself to setting and achieving a completion date no later than the respective annually scheduled audit.  If staff have inquiries regarding the quiz or the answers, post completion, they are encouraged to correspond with the assigned field service representative for clarification via email or by phone at 614-644-0156.  

Please note the Help Desk will be available to answer questions, as always, concerning the affidavit process, however, said Help Desk will not be able to check on the review status of faxed affidavits.

WHAT TO DO WHEN...  Funeral Directors and applicable funeral home staff:  In the event of a decedent's disposition being entered as Removal From State, the date of disposition must be recorded as the date the body is removed from the state.  If the final disposition at the destination of said decedent is cremation, it is possible the crematory will want further authoritative documentation in regards to the burial transit permit as it will be designated with the verbiage 'burial-no cremation'.  In this case, the death certificate and the transit permit can be faxed with a cover letter to our Field Service office at 614-387-1291 and they will promptly respond with wording releasing the burial transit permit of its 'no cremation' parameters and thus making it allowable for said cremation.  For further relatable inquiries, please contact the HelpDesk at 614-466-2531 (option 3).

Local and Deputy Registrars:  All local health departments using Statewide Access should remember to correctly identify their HelpSTAR requests so that we can achieve our 15 minute target turnaround time for abstract error corrections.  In the Title field of each request the local user should include the state file number followed by a qualifier of either 'waiting' or 'mail' to indicate the type of customer while in the Category field of each request the local user should select IPHIS \ Abstract Error.  These actions are essential for us to provide corrections in a timely manner.        

Local VS offices can submit service requests through HelpSTAR at http://helpdesk.odh.ohio.gov  See the Easy Step Guide to HelpSTAR for Local VS Offices.

Click here to view a list of Local Health Districts that have Statewide Access to Ohio birth records. (last updated 3/23/11)

Local VS Offices: For new birth certificates recently registered by the Local Health Departments, the image will not be available until ODH receives and scans the certificate. Once the certificate is scanned and the image is downloaded, IPHIS users can click on ACTIONS, DISPLAY IMAGE/DOCUMENT to view the image.

Tip for all IPHIS-EDRS Users: When you sign into the secure Support Site through Citrix, all of the documents are encrypted in a manner that sometimes causes viewing discoloration and difficulty saving. When you choose to SAVE a document, Citrix refers to your local C: drive as a V: drive. So instead of saving it to your "Desktop", choose the V: drive as the destination. Then look through "My Computer" to find your true C: drive, where the document should have been saved.