1. Gateway to the Future: Improving the National Vital Statistics System St. Louis, MO June 6 th – June 10 th, 2010 Retention and Destruction of Inter-Jurisdictionally Exchanged Vital Records

2. Gateway to the Future: Improving the National Vital Statistics System St. Louis, MO June 6 th – June 10 th, 2010 What? Why? Inquiry from concerned jurisdiction IJE Agreement has no mention of record security or retention IJE Committee surveyed itself, focused on paper records Fourteen states and Statistics Canada responded

3. Gateway to the Future: Improving the National Vital Statistics System St. Louis, MO June 6 th – June 10 th, 2010 Record Retention Time: Statistical Data Files Minimum: records are destroyed as soon as annual statistical data file is created Maximum: records are retained permanently as paper or are scanned or microfilmed

4. Gateway to the Future: Improving the National Vital Statistics System St. Louis, MO June 6 th – June 10 th, 2010 Record Retention Time: Death Roster Records Minimum: as soon as birth certificates have been annotated “deceased” Maximum: records are retained permanently as paper or are scanned or microfilmed

5. Gateway to the Future: Improving the National Vital Statistics System St. Louis, MO June 6 th – June 10 th, 2010 Storage/Security of Records No policy Locked or key-coded environment State archives Locked filing cabinets (fireproof) behind pass-code protected doors Vital records vault

6. Gateway to the Future: Improving the National Vital Statistics System St. Louis, MO June 6 th – June 10 th, 2010 Destruction of Records Not specified or no policy Kept permanently Shredded on-site or off-site Shredding is often by contractor

7. Gateway to the Future: Improving the National Vital Statistics System St. Louis, MO June 6 th – June 10 th, 2010 Responsible Person Vague, various, not specified, none Security chief Named individuals/roles Named organizational units Same as recipient?

8. Gateway to the Future: Improving the National Vital Statistics System St. Louis, MO June 6 th – June 10 th, 2010 Who should receive info? Good: NCHS – Judy Barnes monthly lists. May be more current, but you may pick the wrong recipient. Better: NAPHSIS website, IJE section – lists contacts for paper vs. electronic records based on IJE Agreements. Contact NAPHSIS if your contacts change!

9. Gateway to the Future: Improving the National Vital Statistics System St. Louis, MO June 6 th – June 10 th, 2010 Summary of Current Policies Security is most often similar for exchanged and local records, sometimes set by law Record destruction is unique to exchanged records, some jurisdictions have no policy

10. Gateway to the Future: Improving the National Vital Statistics System St. Louis, MO June 6 th – June 10 th, 2010 Constraints, Exceptions Roster information may be needed for proof or location of death If destruction of roster records is not possible, an alternative storage method is best (e.g. scanned images, microfilm), securely stored Remember, don’t issue copies of another jurisdiction’s records

11. Gateway to the Future: Improving the National Vital Statistics System St. Louis, MO June 6 th – June 10 th, 2010 Suggested Best Practices Destroy records for statistical file as soon as file is complete and edited Destroy roster records as soon as crossmatch/annotation is complete Store and shred paper records using same security as own local records Exchange electronically (STEVE)

12. Gateway to the Future: Improving the National Vital Statistics System St. Louis, MO June 6 th – June 10 th, 2010 Relevant NAPHSIS Projects Draft of new Model Law stipulates that IJE Agreement include retention and disposition instructions Security Guide (under development) will provide guidance for our best practices

13. Gateway to the Future: Improving the National Vital Statistics System St. Louis, MO June 6 th – June 10 th, 2010 Electronic Records STEVE exchange process is secure Storage is more likely to be secure Electronic records have less “street value” Destruction can be complete and easy

14. Gateway to the Future: Improving the National Vital Statistics System St. Louis, MO June 6 th – June 10 th, 2010 Next Steps Develop a policy consistent with Model Law and Security Guide Distribute “Best Practices” Incorporate requirements into next IJE Agreement Continue STEVE roll-out for electronic exchange

15. Gateway to the Future: Improving the National Vital Statistics System St. Louis, MO June 6 th – June 10 th, 2010 IJE Committee and NAPHSIS Staff Contacts Me: Jane.McKendry@cdph.ca.govJane.McKendry@cdph.ca.gov Leesa: LShem-Tov@NAPHSIS.orgLShem-Tov@NAPHSIS.org Bill: WBolton@NAPHSIS.orgWBolton@NAPHSIS.org