When my son was born the hospital only issued us a "crib card" it looks just like a birth certificate, it has his foot prints and everything on it. This worked for getting his ssn, shot records, and for his proof of age while flying. However, I know we will need his actual Birth Certificate to enroll him in pre-school this Fall, so how do I go about getting one after so long? He was born in Ohio and we live in Missouri now.
you just contact the dept of vital records or whatever. You'll have to pay a fee, but they will send you a certified copy. We were issued the same thing when my daughter was born, and then we got the official copy after we requested it a couple weeks later.
If you know the town or city he was born in then contact the vital statistics department of that town. I called the hospital when my child was born and they knew who to contact and gave me the number. You pay a fee ($10 in my area) and they can send you the birth certificate. You may need to show some proof you are the parent. When I went in person I just showed my drivers license. If you call or check online they can give you the specific instructions. There is no time limit on getting a copy of a birth certificate; they keep them pretty much forever. I had to get a new copy when I got married at 31.
unfortunately, you're going to have to go the difficult route, and go to this website. http://www.odh.ohio.gov/vitalstatistics/vitalstats.aspx. its about $20 and will take 3-6 weeks. i recently had to do this, and thought i had to do the long process, but fortunately i still live nearby to where my daughter is born, & it was really quick. just take a trip to ohio? :) it would be faster. haha
I work at a hospital and am fortunate to get to process all the birth certificates.
I get to see new beautiful babies every day and it's such a blessing to see wonderful families and be part of their experience.
Where I live, recent birth certificates are obtained through the Department of Public Health. There is a fee.
Anything older than 2 years has to be obtained at the courthouse in the county that the child was born.
Still a fee.
Contact Vital Statistics in the county your child was born and ask them how to proceed.
In my opinion, every parent should have a certified copy of the original birth certificate.
The complimentary things the hospital provides with the footprints, etc, are not actually legal documents.
Best wishes.
You can actually call any county health department in Ohio now and they can send you a certified copy of the birth certificate.
I had to get a copy of my aunt's birth certificate for my cousin in December and the day I called, I was told that they now have all of Ohio's in one system that they can access and they will print an abstract of the birth certificate. It was $24 to get a copy of my aunt's.
Out here in the boston area they keep them at the town hall of the town they were born in, and in the town you lived in at the time of the birth. copies only cost a few dollars. So i guess you would have to call the town hall of either the town they were born in or the town you lived in at the time and they will send you one... if thats the way ohio does it.
You have a lot of help already but I think if you just google Vital Statistics it will give you a general website where you can navigate from there. I just did it a few months ago for my son's birth certificate and I went through that website. It is secure and legit and yes it does cost. The fee may vary from state to state, but I think I paid about $20 for 2 copies. If you go the electronic route it's much easier. You will just fill everything out on the computer and then they will send you the copy in the mail. You can choose to have express delivery if you need it, otherwise I think mine came in a couple of weeks.
