New Law also Requires Kids in State Licensed Child Care Facilities to be Immunized
News Date: August 18, 2015
Kids Need Vaccines to Stay Healthy and in School
Press
Release - August 17,
2015
Contact: Jose
Rodriguez, Columbus Public Health, 604-5025, [email protected]
Web – Facebook – Twitter
Kids Need
Vaccines to Stay Healthy – and in School
New Law
also Requires Kids in State Licensed Child Care Facilities to be Immunized
As kids
across central Ohio head back to school, day care or college, make sure their
shots are up to date. Immunizations protect them from serious vaccine preventable
diseases – and they are the law.
A new law
from December 2014 now requires that children in state licensed child care
facilities be vaccinated according to the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention’s (CDC) Committee on Immunization Practices schedule.
Children need
a series of shots to be fully protected. Yet, according to the CDC, only
69 percent of young people in Ohio are vaccinated compared to 78 percent
nationally. That leaves a large number of kids at higher risk of illness.
“Recent
significant outbreaks of mumps and measles in Ohio are a stark reminder of the
importance of timely vaccines,” says Columbus Public Health Commissioner Dr.
Teresa Long. “Vaccinations are one of the best tools we have to protect
children from serious diseases, especially when they are in schools, dorms and
day cares where outbreaks can easily occur.”
Ohio
lawmakers also recently added the meningitis vaccine to the list of required
school vaccinations. While the law won’t go into effect until the 2016-17 school
year, parents are encouraged to get their children’s shot now to protect them
as soon as possible.
The
meningococcal booster also is important for kids headed off to college where
being in close quarters such as dorms can boost the risk of meningitis. Young
adults also need two doses of MMR to protect them from mumps and measles.
Vaccinations
are easy to get from healthcare providers, public health clinics and retail
pharmacy outlets. Parents are encouraged to make sure their kids’ shots
are up-to-date and to get any needed vaccines right away before school
exclusion dates arrive.
For more
information on immunizations, visit Columbus Public Health at https://www.columbus.gov/publichealth/features/Back-to-School-Vaccines/,
The Ohio Department of Health at https://www.odh.ohio.gov/odhprograms/bid/immunization/imunchsc.aspx
or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention at http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/.
###