BILL NO. 72

(as introduced)

3rd Session, 61st General Assembly
Nova Scotia
60 Elizabeth II, 2011

Government Bill

Timely Medical Certificates Act

The Honourable John MacDonell
Minister of Service Nova Scotia and Municipal Relations

First Reading: November 1, 2011

(Explanatory Notes)

Second Reading: November 4, 2011

Third Reading: December 8, 2011 (LINK TO BILL AS PASSED)

Clause 1 provides a short title to this Act.

Clause 2 adds the definition of nurse practitioner to the Act.

Clause 3

2 Section 2 of Chapter 494 of the Revised Statutes, 1989, the Vital Statistics Act, as amended by Chapter 8 of the Acts of 1998, Chapter 29 of the Acts of 2000 and Chapter 31 of the Acts of 2001, is further amended by adding immediately after clause (o) the following clause:

(oa) "nurse practitioner" means a nurse practitioner as defined in the Registered Nurses Act;

(3) The funeral director shall forthwith after the death obtain from

(a) the medical practitioner who was last in attendance during the last illness of the deceased;

(b) a nurse practitioner in the circumstances prescribed by the regulations;

(c) a qualified person authorized by the regulations and in the circumstances prescribed by the regulations; or

(d) where the Chief Medical Examiner has conducted an inquest on the body or an inquiry into the circumstances of the death, the Chief Medical Examiner,

a medical certificate in the prescribed form stating the cause of death according to the International List of Causes of Death, as last revised by the International Commission assembled for that purpose.

(4) Upon the request of the funeral director, the person who has been asked to provide the medical certificate pursuant to subsection (3) shall complete the medical certificate in the prescribed form and cause it to be delivered to the funeral director.

(2) Subsection 17(5) of Chapter 494 as amended by Chapter 31 of the Acts of 2001, is further amended by

(a) adding ", a nurse practitioner or a qualified person" immediately after "medical practitioner" in the second line; and

4 Subsection 51(1) of Chapter 494, as amended by Chapter 8 of the Acts of 1998, Chapter 29 of the Acts of 2000, Chapters 5 and 45 of the Acts of 2001 and Chapter 15 of the Acts of 2006, is further amended by adding immediately after clause (f) the following clauses:

(fa) specifying qualified persons for the purpose of Section 17;

(fb) prescribing the circumstances under which, including when and where, a nurse practitioner or a qualified person is authorized to complete and sign a medical certificate of death;