A new law was passed in Pennsylvania, back in December, in an effort to make access to birth and death records easier. However, there is some controversy as to how much easier the law really makes records access. See the following article from The Times Leader.
Birth, death records more readily available Tom Mooney Out on a Limb
Tom Mooney
Pennsylvania has taken a step toward making birth and death records more readily available to genealogists and other members of the public. But, according to a records activist group, that step is not quite far enough.
Starting in about mid-February, birth certificates 105 years old and more as well as death certificates 50 years old and more will be open to the public, but with some limits. You will have to visit the Pennsylvania Archives in Harrisburg and search on a computer there or be a subscriber to Ancestry.com, which is digitizing the records.
The new law, signed by Gov. Tom Corbett in December, will replace the current system, under which for all those birth and death records it is necessary to submit a postal mail request, or visit a state Vital Records office, give the date and place of death and pay a fee. Genealogists, of course, are the heaviest users of birth and death records, and they have long found the process for obtaining them difficult and time-consuming — particularly since the state maintains no index.