Montana Title 50. Health and Safety § 50-15-403. Preparation and filing of death or fetal death certificate

(1) A person in charge of disposition of a dead body or fetus that weighs at least 350 grams at death or, if the weight is unknown, has reached 20 completed weeks of gestation at death shall obtain personal data on the deceased, including the deceased's social security number, if any, or, in the case of a fetal death, on the parents that is required by the department from persons best qualified to supply the data and enter it on the death or fetal death certificate.

(2) The person in charge of disposition of the dead body or fetus shall present the death certificate to the certifying physician, the certifying advanced practice registered nurse, or the coroner having jurisdiction for medical certification of the cause of death. The medical certification must be completed by the physician, the advanced practice registered nurse, or the coroner within the timeframe established by the department by rule. The person in charge of disposition shall obtain the completed certification of the cause of death from the physician, the advanced practice registered nurse, or the coroner and shall, within the time that the department may prescribe by rule, file the death or fetal death certificate with the local registrar in the registration area where the death occurred or, if the place of death is unknown, where the dead body was discovered.

(3) If a dead body is found in this state but the place of death is unknown, the place where the body is found must be shown as the place of death on the death certificate. If the date of death is unknown, then the approximate date must be entered on the certificate. If the date cannot be approximated, the date that the body was found must be entered as the date of death, and the certificate must indicate that fact.

(4) When a death occurs in a moving vehicle, as defined in 45-2-101, in the United States and the body is first removed from the vehicle in this state, the death must be registered in this state and the place where the body is first removed is considered the place of death. When a death occurs in a moving vehicle while in international air space or in a foreign country or its air space and the body is first removed from the vehicle in this state, the death must be registered in this state, but the actual place of death, insofar as it can be determined, must be entered on the death certificate.