Question: Can anyone get a certified copy of a birth or death certificate? How do I access these documents?
Answer: No, Hawaii law restricts access to vital records to those with a “direct and tangible interest” in the specific record. Vital records include birth, death, civil union, marriage and divorce certificates. The law, Hawaii Revised Statutes 338-18, spells out a list of people who are entitled to them, including:
>> The registrant (the person whom the record is about).
>> The registrant’s spouse.
>> The registrant’s parent(s).
>> A descendant of the registrant (e.g., a child or grandchild).
>> A person having a common ancestor with the registrant (e.g., a sibling, grandparent, aunt/uncle or cousin).
>> A legal guardian of the registrant.
>> A person or agency acting on behalf of the registrant.
>> A personal representative of the registrant’s estate.
>> A person whose right to obtain a copy of the record is established by an order of a court of competent jurisdiction.
>> Adoptive parents who have filed a petition for adoption and need to determine the death of one or more of the prospective adopted child’s natural or legal parents.
>> A person who needs to determine the marital status of a former spouse in order to determine the payment of alimony.
>> A person who needs to determine the death of a nonrelated co-owner of property purchased under a joint tenancy agreement.
>> A person who needs a death certificate for the determination of payments under a credit insurance policy.
“If you are not able to establish a direct and tangible interest in the record, you are ineligible and will not be issued a certified copy of the record,” according to the state Department of Health. The Office of Health Status Monitoring, a unit of the department, maintains vital records for events that occurred in Hawaii.
If you are eligible to receive a certified copy of any vital record, you might be able to order it online at health.hawaii.gov/vitalrecords. You can also obtain general information there or by calling 586-4533. The telephone line provides prerecorded information around the clock, seven days a week.
Q: I call and call the Social Security office, and I can never get a live person and no one ever calls back. Is there a “staffed” number for Social Security in Hawaii?
A: The number to call is 800-772-1213, a national number. Live service for Hawaii residents is available 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. local time,Monday to Friday, said Jane Yamamoto-Burigsay, a public affairs specialist for the Social Security Administration based in the Honolulu/Kapolei District office.
That’s two hours less than the live service hours for the Eastern, Central, Mountain and Pacific time zones, which are 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. local time. Hawaii falls into a group that includes Alaska, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands that has different hours, she said.
“However, they have automated services 24 hours a day, seven days a week,” she said, referring to recorded information available on the telephone line and to Social Security’s interactive website, found at www.socialsecurity.gov.
“We regret that your reader was not satisfied with the service he received in our Social Security office. You should receive courteous and complete service when you contact one of our offices,” she said. “We hope he will find future contacts with our offices more satisfactory.”
Mahalo
Thank you so much to the people who helped me reconnect with my car key after the Feb. 18 talk given by well-known food writer Mark Bittman at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. There were so many people I inconvenienced: the security guard who let us into the building when he was already locking up; Elliott, who noticed how worried I looked and took the time to tell me he saw someone give a key to Robert, one of the event leaders, then walked with us to try to find him; Daniela and another gentleman, who called Robert to set up a meeting place for me to get my key; Robert, who left a dinner to bring back my car key; and my friend, who begged the security guard to let us into the building, drove me around and stayed with me until she knew everything was OK. I am so sorry for all the trouble and so grateful to have come in contact with such kind people. — Michelle Ramos, Waipahu
Write to “Kokua Line” at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 7 Waterfront Plaza, Suite 210, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Honolulu 96813; call 529-4773; fax 529-4750; or email kokualine@staradvertiser.com.
