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Archiver > GENMTD > 1999-01 > 0915827121


From: <>
Subject: Re: Cause of death
Date: Fri, 08 Jan 1999 12:25:21 -0800


Lady Diana <LadyDiana@*Goddess_Of_The*full-moon.com> sez:
: JoAnn Yuska wrote in message <7701pr$>...

:> I just read the message from Kate Reeves on this subject. I too have
:> requested a death record from the NJ state record center in Trenton. I
:> requested that of my husband's grandfather and received one that had the
:> cause of death blanked out. When I questioned it, I was told that that
:> information is only available to family members (his and our last names
:> are the same!). Later I went to the city hall where he died and
:> specifically told them what I wanted and they did give me the
:> information. The thing that bothered me about this was that we wanted
:> the information not only for genealogy reasons, but also for health
:> reasons (he had just been diagnosed as a diabetic and we were checking
:> for a family history).

: I was told, when I called, that I needed to SPECIFICALLY
: REQUEST that COD be listed, and my relationship to the deceased.
: They only release it to family members; direct descendant types.
: Cousins, nephews, etc, can't get it.

I haven't written for a DC from NJ in almost a decade, but the
last one I got wasn't redacted in any way. Perhaps there has been
a policy change since then. OTOH, I get mine from the town
whereever possible.

If I had to guess, I'd hazard that it may be a state policy,
perhaps having roots in some 'medical privacy' law (possibly
stemming from the AIDS problem, if I can trust a dim memory of
a possible news article from years back). Knowing bureaucracies,
it probably wasn't intended to apply to DCs, but has ended up
being that way.

--

Paul Havemann ()
Havemann Family History: http://www.havemann.com/

Researching BAUER, BERESFORD, BOETHE (Ger. > USA), BROWN (No. NJ),
CONKLIN (No. NJ), FRAME, HARTUNG, HAVEMANN, HEAD (Eng. > USA),
KIEP (Ger. > USA), MUSTERER, WETZEL (Ger. > USA),
WINGENDORFF (Ger. > USA)

Have info related to BEHRENS (PA), HEIMOWITZ (NYC 1920s),
NOVOTNY (NYC 1920s)

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