Mahaska Residents Can Swap-Out Birth Certificates

Example of birth certificates being exchanged.

Mahaska County, Iowa – Mahaska County residents can exchange their birth certificates issued between May of 1993 and October of 2009, a time when parents were given wallet-sized newborn birth certificates.

The certificates, which are part of the vital record, don’t contain enough information, making them less useful for the owner when a situation arises that requires a birth certificate.

If you have one of these cards, and would like to exchange it at no cost, there are options. Mahaska County Recorder Diane Upton Crookham encourages you to visit her office at the Mahaska County Courthouse to get the updated version. Bringing along your driver’s license, or other valid ID, to help identify yourself, will speed the process. The Mahaska County Recorder’s Office is open from 8am to 4:30pm Monday through Friday. You can reach them by telephone at (641) 673-8187 if you have additional questions. You can also accomplish the exchange via mail.

You can exchange the certificate by mail or in person with the Bureau of Health Statistics, at 321 E. 12th Street, Lucas Office Building, Des Moines, Iowa 50319.

To exchange your wallet card, you must do the following:
1. Download the Application for Certified Copy of Iowa Vital Record from http://www.idph.iowa.gov/health-statistics/request-record;
2. Open Application for Copy of Birth Certificate link and print the document;
3. Complete the application, including notarized signature;
4. Return the application, a copy of your driver’s license, and the original newborn birth certificate wallet card, in person or by mail.

Allow between four to six weeks to receive your replacement in the mail.