Sec. 1. 22 MRSA §2841, first ¶, as amended by PL 1989, c. 274, §2, is further amended to read:

Except as authorized by the department or as required under section 1596, a certificate of each death of a fetus of 20 or more weeks of gestation which that occurs in this State shall must be filed with the clerk of the municipality where the delivery occured occurred within 14 days after delivery and prior to removal of the fetus from the State.

Sec. 2. 22 MRSA §2841, sub-§1, as amended by PL 1977, c. 232, §1, is further amended to read:

1. Certificate filed by funeral director. The funeral director or other authorized person in charge of the disposition of the dead fetus or its removal from the State shall be is responsible for filing the certificate. In the absence of such a person, the physician, the certified nurse midwife, the nurse practitioner or other person in attendance at or after the delivery shall be responsible for filing the certificate. He The person responsible for filing the certificate shall obtain the personal data from the best qualified person or source available and shall present the certificate to the person responsible for completing the medical certification of the cause of death.

Sec. 3. 22 MRSA §2841, sub-§2, as amended by PL 1989, c. 274, §3, is further amended to read:

2. Medical certificate by physician, certified nurse midwife or nurse practitioner. The medical certification shall must be completed and signed within 5 days after delivery by the physician, certified nurse midwife or nurse practitioner in attendance at or after the delivery, except when an inquiry as to the cause of fetal death is required by law.

Sec. 4. 22 MRSA §2842, sub-§2, as amended by PL 2003, c. 74, §1 and c. 689, Pt. B, §6, is further amended to read:

2. Medical certificate by physician or nurse practitioner. The medical certification of the cause of death must be completed in typewritten or legibly hand-printed style and signed in a timely fashion by a physician or nurse practitioner authorized to practice in the State who has knowledge of the patient's recent medical condition, in accordance with department regulations and other laws detailing who can certify and in what time frame, except when the death falls under the jurisdiction of