New to Birth Certificate: Does Mom Have Chlamydia?
So you thought picking the new baby’s name was hard? If you plan on giving birth in Utah, you might want to brush up on your sexual and medical histories too.
The state is updating its birth certificate process after more than two decades – and they’re adding a series of health-related questions – including whether Mom used artificial insemination, whether she asked for an elective C-section, even if she has an STD.
Shocked? Don’t be – Utah is actually late to adopt this new survey, which was created by the National Center for Health Statistics back in 2005 (which is when I gave birth – so I never had to answer – nah nah nuh nah nah).
The state says the bulk of the questions will not actually go on the birth certificate. So you won’t be registering Junior for kindergarten with a piece of paper that says “she had chlamydia.” There’s not even a legal obligation to answer.
Which kind of makes you wonder – can’t they think of a better time to ask? Public health officials need good data, and answers are only as good as the questions asked. But an OB/GYN running down a medical history with his patient is going to get the same info – and he’ll get it BEFORE a woman is exhausted from thirteen hours of labor or still doped up on painkillers from a C-section.
Making me even more skeptical: designers of the questionnaire admit they don’t believe women accurately report their alcohol use during pregnancy. And they’re going to be that much more eager to cough up the details with their baby out of the womb – and prime for grabbing by child welfare workers? Or that much happier to report they had an elective C-section so their insurance company can come running in to refuse to pay for it?
Image: Making Greeting Cards
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