Medical certification must be completed and returned to the funeral director within forty-eight (48) hours after receipt of notice of the death by the Physician, APRN or PA in charge of the patient’s care for the illness or condition which resulted in death, except when inquiry is required by coroner or medical examiner.

If the forty-eight-hour period terminates on a weekend, federal holiday, or state holiday, the Physician, APRN or PA must complete the certification by the end of the next business day.

The CDC Physicians’ Handbook on Medical Certification of Death states, “the attending physician is responsible for certifying the cause of death.” In some cases, he or she will both pronounce death and certify the cause of death.

APRN’s including APN and NP & Physician Assistants MAY PRONOUNCE DEATH AND CERTIFY THE MANNER AND CAUSE OF DEATH

Section 44-33-34 of the South Carolina Code of Law was amended to allow Advanced Practice Registered Nurses to pronounce and certify the manner and cause of death and sign death certificates pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 63, Title 44 and Chapter 8, Title 32.

Section 40-7-935 of the South Carolina Code of Law was amended to allow Physician Assistants to pronounce and certify the manner and cause of death and sign death certificates pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 63, Title 44 and Chapter 8, Title 32.

In the absence of said physician/APRN or with his or her approval, the certificate may be completed by his or her associate physician, the chief medical officer of the institution in which death occurred or by the pathologist who performed an autopsy upon the decedent.

The record must be designated to the medical certifier. Once all demographic fields have been completed, from the menu click Designate Medical Certifier.  Select the Certifier Type and Facility Name and/or Certifier Name, then click Search.  In the grid, highlight the Certifier’s Name and click the Designate button.  If the designated Medical Certifier is not participating electronically or is Unknown, the record will drop to paper once demographic verification is complete. Note:  It maybe necessary to contact the Medical Certifier to confirm name and location.

The new record function allows users to initiate a death record in the VRSIIS application or retrieve records that users already initiated in the VRSIIS system. Select the New button or Record New from the menu.  Enter the following mandatory fields:  Date of Death Type, Date of Death, SSN, Name (First, Middle, Last (Mandatory, Suffix), Date of Birth, Gender, Type of Place of Death and County of Death.  SCVRSIIS will perform a search for matching records. If an un-owned or matched record owned by the same facility is found, continue with retrieving the existing record.  If no match is found, a new record should be created.

Users now can now reset their own passwords.  If you have forgotten your password, please click on “Forgot Password” located on the left side of screen.  The Reset Password screen will appear; enter the User Name and Email Address and then click on Reset Password.

If you fail to receive the email with the reset password or have forgotten your pin number, please contact the Field Consultants at 803-898-3409 between the hours of 8:30am- 5:00pm, Monday through Friday excluding state holidays.

For security reasons, we must speak to the individual needing to have pin/password reset.