Death Registration Information - Certifiers
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Office of Vital Records
Death Registration for Medical Certifiers
In Minnesota, medical certifiers are:
- Physicians (including medical examiners and coroners)
- Advanced practice registered nurses
- Physician assistants
The Office of Vital Records (OVR) oversees vital records in Minnesota. And OVR manages death records in Minnesota Registration & Certification (MR&C). MR&C is web-based; various user groups register Minnesota vital events in, and issue certificates from, MR&C.
On this page:
Complete/Provide/Certify Cause of Death
National Vital Statistics System
Complete and Certify Cause of Death
Medical certifiers must complete death records in MR&C or appoint staff to complete records in MR&C on their behalf.
Funeral home staff start death records when they register the fact of death and enter the medical certifier’s name. MR&C notifies the medical certifier to add the cause and manner of death to MR&C and complete the death record. The cause of death is an etiologic explanation of the order, type, and association of events resulting in death. Adding the cause and manner of death is the final step in a patient’s care and your best medical opinion. Medical opinions may vary among individual certifiers.
Complete (filed) death records allow medical examiners and coroners to approve cremations, and families to buy death certificates. MR&C supports prompt, accurate, and complete death registration.
To become an MR&C user, see MR&C for Medical Certifiers.
Video on entering cause of death in MR&C: Quick start for medical certifiers
For help with cause of death statements and certifying COVID-19 deaths see Medical Certifier Resources.
National Vital Statistics System
In the United States, the legal authority to register deaths lies within 57 jurisdictions (50 states, 2 cities, and 5 territories). These jurisdictions share death record information with the National Vital Statistics System (NVSS) at CDC. NVSS compiles national mortality statistics to inform a variety of medical and health-related research efforts.
Local and state public health agencies use information from death records for disease surveillance and to assess community health status.
Statutory Authority:
Minnesota Vital Records Act, Minnesota Statutes, sections 144.211-144.227
Minnesota Rules, chapter 4601