Georgia County Registrars,
On July 1
st
, two new fields will be added to the GAVERS death module in hopes of improving Georgia Department of Public Health’s efforts to identify and prevent drug overdose deaths. These new questions will appear on the Death Medical-2 tab below the “Manner of Death” question. The new questions are:
1. Do you have reason to suspect that this death is due to an unintentional drug overdose?
- Possible responses are YES, NO, UNKNOWN
2.
Briefly describe the circumstance
:
- Optional free text field where the coroner or medical examiner can describe why they might suspect a drug overdose
These new fields will only appear in GAVERS. They will not appear on any printed certificates or drop to paper forms. Data entered in these fields will be used for public health surveillance only, and will not show on the final death certificate or the official cause of death. A screenshot with the new fields are highlighted below.
A few more notes:
- Local registrars should not change or edit the information entered in these fields by the coroner or medical examiner if the record was completed electronically in GAVERS.
- These new questions can and should be completed even if the cause and manner of death are still pending.
- When completing a drop to paper death certificate please select “Unknown” for the first question, and leave the second question blank.
- Data from these two questions should not be shared with customers or families requesting the death certificate.
If you have any questions, please contact the State Vital Records Office and we’ll be happy to assist you.
