Death Certification: Writing Cause-of-Death Statements
![Image of morgue](/https/www.cdc.gov/nchs/images/nvss/GettyImages-157436655-death-certificate-1150x428-1.png?_=93000)
Cause-of-death statements on death certificates capture the sequence of events leading to death, plus the time interval between the onset of each condition and death. When a death occurs, a certifier must determine the cause(s) of death and accurately report it on the death certificate.
Guidelines for who can certify a death can vary by jurisdiction, but the certifier is typically a physician, medical examiner, or coroner. This page contains general and topic-specific guidance to help medical certifiers correctly report the cause(s) of death on the death certificate.
Specific Topics of Interest
- Death Certificates: New Tools Make a Tough Task Easier
NCHS helps the process of Death Certification by proving innovative tools to make the process more streamlined.