Texas Vital Statistics News, Volume 8, Number 2, Spring 2005 Page: 2
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As the six-month anniversary of
TER-birth implementation ap-
proaches, we want to reflect on the
challenges and triumphs we have
experienced together in totally
changing the way Texas registers
and issues birth certificates.
Thanks to you, it's working!
Thanks to your cooperation, there
are now 301 hospitals, birthing
centers and midwives and 113 local
registrar offices all utilizing TER-
Birth. As of April 1, 102,578 births
have been registered using the
system. This has been a long,
difficult implementation for all
involved. There were bugs in the
software, new procedures to learn,
new data items to collect and just a
whole different way of doing things.
Texas Vital Statistics wishes to
express sincere appreciation to all
who have worked through this new
system with us. With your diligence
and dedication to the important
process of birth registration, we
have come a long way! Also we
appreciate your valuable feedback ~
and suggestions, some of which we
have been able to implement and
others we have on our "wish list."
New & Improved Processes!
We want to update you on some
activities we have been working on
to improve user accessibility.
First, software and hardware have
been ordered to increase the
incoming fax lines from two to four.
You will still only dial the one toll-
free number (1-866-566-3138),
but, by late May, there will be four
lines available to receive your faxed
AOP and ImmTrac forms. At our
request, many of you have been
faxing your AOP and ImmTrac
forms separately. This is no longer
necessary. Beginning immediately,
you may fax them together and as
frequently as you wish.
Secondly, Texas Vital Statistics has
reallocated staff and hired additional
temporary staff to work a secondTER-Birth Update & Tips
shift to clear the AOP backdog. As
we began using the system, we
learned that if the software was
unable to read a faxed form, it would
be sent to a queue to wait for a person
to manually process that unreadable
form and all others faxed in at the
same time. This resulted in a severe
backlog. Until VS could allocate
more staff to the reviewing process,
there were many complaints from
parents needing certified copies of
their child's record and their child's
Social Security Card. This impacted
everyone: hospitals, local registrars
and the State Office. We expect to
be completely current by the end of
May, and to remain so.
In a related activity, as of April 27,
requests for SSNs for newborns are
sent to the Social Security Adminis-
tration within one day of the legal
release of the record. Previously,
those requests were not forwarded to
SSA until the birth certificates had
been assigned a state file number. By
clearing the AOP backlog and
expediting the SSN requests, we
expect to significantly reduce the
number of customer inquiries in
Austin and at your sites.
Tips for More Efficient Use:
We have several tips that can make
the fax process even more efficient.
(1) Please fax only AOP and
ImmTrac Consent forms to the fax
server. Do not send fax cover sheets
unless your hospital requires you to
do so.
(2) Do not fax the AOP back, AOP
Parent Surveys, Verification of Birth
Facts forms, Mother or Medical
Worksheets or Social Security letters
to our office.
(3) Do not fax applications for
amendments, notes to VS staff or
Data Correction Sheets to the fax
server.
There are several things that birth
registrars can do to help with timely
registration of births.
(1) Avoid manual completion of
AOPs. Nearly 66% of TER-gener-ated AOPs move through the
system without delay, while all
manual AOPs require review and
are delayed.
(2) Send faxes with the top part of
the form entered first. The software
cannot read an upside-down form.
(3) Legally release your birth
records as quickly as possible.
(4) Check your Unresolved Records
Queue regularly to identify any
records that may have been rejected
and returned to your work queue.
Regional Conferences:
The Details
Texas Vital Statistics and our co-
sponsor, the Texas Public Health
Association, will host four regional
one-day conferences in August in
four Texas cities: Fort Worth,
Odessa, McAllen and Galveston.
At each conference event, there
will be full-day tracts on Birth
Registration, Death Registration and
Local Registration. AOP Certifica-
tion training will be provided. Of
special interest will be information
about the new Texas Electronic
Registrar (TER)-Death system.
Continuing Education hours have
been applied for with the Texas
Department ofState Health Services
Midwifery Program, AHIMA, The
Texas Justice Court Training
Center, The County and District
Clerks' Association of Texas and the
Texas Funeral Services Commission.
To register for a Regional Confer-
ence, copy and complete the form
on pg. 3, and mail as directed. The
cost of the conference is $60 in
advance, $70 at the door. Registra-
tion by mail must be received by
July 29th.
For more information on hotel
rates and reservations for these
conferences, see www.texaspha.org.
Correction: Claybar Funeral
Home & Christus St. Michael
Health System were inadvertently
omitted from 5-Star Winner lists in
the last newsletter issue. Apologies
& congratulations to these winners!2
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Texas. Bureau of Vital Statistics. Texas Vital Statistics News, Volume 8, Number 2, Spring 2005, periodical, Spring 2005; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1624686/m1/2/: accessed May 29, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.