Business Need/Opportunity/Objectives

The OSR is required to provide timely, accurate and appropriate information to effectively serve communities and allow other authorized agencies to obtain vital data from this system.

However, the current vital record system MNVRV2000 is outdated and has difficulty meeting the growing business demands of vital statistics and a re-designed vital records system will address existing problems resulting from an outdated system.

OSR recognizes the need for a more sophisticated information system to respond to the multiple challenges that they must face, including modern issues like prevention of identity theft, integration with electronic health records, and rapid response to bioterrorism and pandemic health events.

A new system will use industry standards to strengthen security to prevent fraud, further eliminate manual paper-based processes, improve the timeliness and accuracy of vital event data, incorporate new administration features to meet new federal certification standards and transform OSR from its current environment to a highly secure integrated system that meets the growing needs of its constituents.

Since 2004, the National Association for Public Health Statistics and Information Systems
(NAPHSIS) and National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) have urged all jurisdictions to re design their vital statistics systems with the ultimate goal to allow immediate confirmation of the information presented by an applicant to a government office anywhere in the nation irrespective of the place or date of issuance.

Nearly all of the states are participating in a system re-design project. NAPHSIS published a vital record re-engineering survey recently showing a majority of states have moved to a web-based solution for their vital records system. OSR sees the necessity to develop a system that is interoperable with other states, other federal agencies such as the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (U.S. DHS), and the Social Security Administration (SSA).

Deliverables

1) The Vital Records Application contains the following modules:

A. Birth Module

Users are: Hospital staff, OSR staff, local registrars, and other state/federal agencies.

This module collects and stores birth-related data including recognition of parentage; prints informational and legal birth certificates.

B. Death Module

Users are: Funeral directors, physicians, medical examiners, local registrars, OSR staff, and other state/federal agencies.

This module collects and stores death related data; prints informational and legal death certificates and disposition permits.

C. Customer Service Module

Users are: Authorized OSR staff and local registrar staff

This module tracks the transactions for purchase of certified birth, death and Recognition of Parentage (ROP) and fetal death records. It will also track amendments to birth and death records and replacement of records due to adoption or paternity adjudication, court order or ROP's and other customer requests. It starts when a transaction is generated, and ends when it has closed. It provides the details on each transaction. It also monitors transactions on individual records.

D. Electronic Tracking of Fees and Invoice Module

Users are: Authorized OSR staff and local registrar staff

The electronic fees and invoice-tracking module processes and handles any cost-related issues, such as credit card payments, checks, invoices and tracking of security paper.

E. Report Module

Users are: Authorized OSR staff

This module provides built-in reports and has the capability to create self-tailored reports. It is a very complete and sophisticated reporting mechanism. The purpose of this module is to provide data and efficient tools to analyze data, and improve public health.

F. View Module

Users: Authorized MDH and external public health customers

This module provides a secure layer for customers to view the portion of data they have been authorized to have access. It is read-only, without the ability to write into the system. It promotes better data security for vital records.

G. User Access Maintenance Module

Users: Internal technology staff

This module provides for maintaining appropriate access for the various types of users and maintaining their login accounts. Maintenance activities include the granting and/or removal of user rights.

2) Hardware and Software Environment and Redundancy

MDH will provide the necessary additional hardware and software for this system development project, and will also provide and manage the infrastructure on the servers and the network. The proposed Technical Architecture diagram is included in the RFP.

3) Establish Internal Capacity to Maintain and Enhance the System

The vendor selected for the development phase of this project will provide necessary knowledge transfer and training to allow MDH staff to maintain and enhance the system.