The New Hampshire Division of Vital Records is set to roll out the first electronic cause-of-death registry in the United States, the Concord Monitor reports.
The registry — which physicians, nurses and funeral directors will be able to access via smartphone app — will launch later this month, according to Politico eHealth. The app will enable users to file certificates of death with computer-assisted documentation, which will update relevant databases in real-time.
The new electronic system contrasts New Hampshire's current process, in which the state sends data to the CDC twice a day, according to Politico eHealth. This real-time data may help public health officials detect outbreaks of new diseases or drugs early on, which is why the CDC has funded the app with roughly $200,000, according to Concord Monitor.