With the new school year upon us, the Public Health Immunization Program wants to remind parents how important it is for their children to be up to date on all the necessary vaccinations.
Vaccines are important not only for those who receive them but also for the people who are not able to get vaccinated, such as newborns and those with compromised immune systems. Why? So people around them don’t get sick and expose them to diseases.
Because of vaccinations, we no longer see diseases such as Polio and Diphtheria in the United States; and others such as Measles and Tetanus are rare. However these diseases are still prevalent in other parts of the world and because of our mobile society, the next disease outbreak could be a plane ride away if we do not continue to vaccinate.
For children starting kindergarten, the required/recommended vaccines are:
- Polio (OPV or IPV)
- DTP/DT/Td (Diphtheria, Tetanus and Acellular Pertussis OR Tetanus and Diphtheria only)
- MMR (Measles, Mumps, and Rubella)
- HIB (Haemophilus Influenzae B, Required only for child care and preschool)
- Hepatitis B
- Varicella (Chickenpox)
- Hepatitis A (Recommended)
- Influenza (Recommended yearly vaccine)
For teens going into seventh grade, the required/recommended vaccines are:
- Tdap (Tetanus, Diphtheria, and Pertussis booster)
- HPV (Human Papillomavirus. Recommended)
- MCV4 (Meningococcal Conjugate. Recommended)
- Influenza (Recommended yearly vaccine)
For a complete list of CDC recommended vaccines and immunizations schedules visit: www.cdc.gov/vaccines/schedules.
