Section 24B Birth information; statistical purposes - Massachusetts Statutes

Section 24B. Upon the birth of any child, the physician, certified nurse midwife, administrator or other person in charge of a hospital, or any other person responsible for reporting a birth pursuant to chapter 46 shall forward to the commissioner any information, including the residence address and social security number of each parent, as required by the commissioner for administrative, research and statistical purposes, including the purposes of the IV-D agency as set forth in chapter 119A. Access to such information by the IV-D agency shall include electronic access. Such data that is included in the certificate of birth shall be transmitted within ten days of the birth of the child and shall not constitute a public record and shall not be available except for the foregoing purposes. Disclosure of information for research purposes which may identify any person named in any vital record or report restricted by section 2A of chapter 46 or by this section may only be made in accordance with regulations promulgated pursuant to section 4 of chapter 17, which regulations shall require the submission of written requests for information by researchers and the execution of research agreements that protect the confidentiality of the information provided. Such agreements shall prohibit the release by the researcher of any information that might identify any person. For the purposes of this chapter, research means a systematic investigation designed primarily to develop or contribute to general knowledge, including public health, medical, social, demographic and historical research. Nothing in this section shall prohibit the release of information or data that would not identify any person named in a vital record or report.