MISSISSIPPI

DENIES UNRESTRICTED ACCESS TO OBC (Court order required)

 

Who May Access Information
Citation: Ann. Code § 93-17-207
Non-identifying information may be provided to:
• The adopted person who is age 18 or older
• The adoptive parent
• The legal guardian or custodian of an adopted person
• The offspring or birth sibling of an adopted person if the requester is age 18 or older
Identifying information is available to the adopted person who is age 21 or older.

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Access to Original Birth Certificate
Citation: Ann. Code §§ 93-17-21; 93-17-205
The original birth certificate shall not be a public record and shall not be divulged except upon the order of the court or pursuant to
§§ 93-17-201 through 93-17-223.
The birth parent may file with the bureau at any time an affidavit authorizing the bureau to provide the adopted person with his or
her original birth certificate, or an affidavit expressly prohibiting the release of any information. The affidavit may be revoked at any
time by written notification to the bureau.

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Access to Nonidentifying Information
Citation: Ann. Code §§ 93-17-205; 93-17-207; 93-17-209
The Bureau of Vital Statistics shall maintain a centralized adoption records file for all adoptions performed in this State after July 1,
2005 that shall include the following information:
• The medical and social history of the birth parents, including information regarding genetically inheritable diseases and any
similar information about the adopted person’s grandparents, aunts, uncles, brothers, and sisters, if known
• A report of any medical examination that either birth parent had within 1 year before the date of the petition for adoption, if
available and known
• A report describing the adopted person’s prenatal care and medical condition at birth, if available and known
• The medical and social history of the adopted person, including information regarding genetically inheritable diseases, and
any other relevant medical, social, and genetic information, if available
Any birth parent may file with the bureau at any time any relevant supplemental nonidentifying information about the adopted
person or the birth parents, and the bureau shall maintain this information in the centralized adoption records file.
Nonidentifying information shall be released for a reasonable fee to any qualified person listed above. If the information is not on file,
the adopted person may request the bureau to locate the birth parent and obtain the information.
If an agency receives a report from a physician that a birth parent or another child of the birth parent may have a genetically
transferable disease, the agency shall notify the adopted person of the existence of the disease if he or she is age 21 or older, or the
adopted person’s guardian, custodian, or adoptive parent if he or she is under age 21. If an agency receives a report from a physician
that an adopted person may have a genetically transferable disease, the agency shall notify the adopted person’s birth parent of the
existence of the disease.

 

Mutual Access to Identifying Information
Citation: Ann. Code §§ 93-17-205; 93-17-215; 93-17-217; 93-17-219
The bureau shall maintain as part of the centralized adoption records file the following:
• The name, date of birth, Social Security number (both original and revised, where applicable), and birth certificate (both
original and revised) of the adopted person
• The names, current addresses, and Social Security numbers of the adopted person’s birth parents, guardian, and legal
custodian
• Any other available information about the birth parent’s identity and location
The birth parent may file with the bureau at any time an affidavit authorizing the bureau to provide the adopted person with his or
her original birth certificate and with any other available information about the birth parent’s identity and location, or an affidavit
expressly prohibiting the bureau from releasing any information about his or her identity and location, and prohibiting any licensed
adoption agency from conducting a search for such birth parent. An affidavit filed under this section may be revoked at any time by
written notification to the bureau.
An adopted person age 21 or older may request identifying information regarding either birth parent, unless that birth parent has
executed an affidavit prohibiting the release of such information. The adopted person must submit to counseling in connection with
any release.
If an affidavit is not on file, the adopted person may request the agency to undertake a search for the birth parent who has not filed
an affidavit.

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Where the Information Can Be Located
• Mississippi Department of Health, Vital Records
• The licensed agency involved in the adoption

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FIND YOUR BIRTH PARENTS