August 24, 2006
Immunization Requirements Outlined for 2006 School Year
As the new school year approaches, families across Montana are checking off items on their list of things to do: haircuts, backpacks, school supplies, new shoes.
The Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services (DPHHS) reminds families to add another important requirement to their lists: Make sure students’ immunizations are up to date.
“Students entering both public and private schools are required to have proof of appropriate immunizations,” said Joyce Burgett, supervisor of the DPHHS Immunization Program. “The only exceptions are for religious or medical reasons.”
Burgett said there are a couple of relatively new vaccination requirements that parents or guardians may not be aware of.
In addition to the usual childhood vaccinations, the following students must now have received two doses of MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) vaccine after 12 months of age, with at least one month between doses:
- Any child entering kindergarten, or in the case of a school with no kindergarten, first grade; or
- Any child entering any grade from 7th to 12th who has not already received the required MMR doses.
Before entering the 7th grade, students must also be vaccinated for tetanus and diphtheria unless:
- It has been less than five years since the student’s last dose of DTaP, DT or Td,
- The student is not yet 11 years old;
The new requirements reflect national recommendations by the U.S. Public Health Service, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the American Academy of Family Physicians.
Burgett also noted that there is a new vaccine, known as the Tdap, that protects against pertussis, or whooping cough, as well as against tetanus and diptheria.
“Given the outbreaks of pertussis we’ve seen in Montana in recent years, the Tdap is a good option for increased protection not only of students, but of whole communities,” she added.
For other immunization requirements, Burgett said, talk to your personal health-care provider, contact your local health department, or visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Web site on Vaccines and Immunizations at: http://www.cdc.gov/node.do/id/0900f3ec8000e2f3
Burgett acknowledged that some people are reluctant to immunize their children because of concerns about potential side effects, but she said the benefits of immunizations outweigh the risks in most cases.
“Immunizations, like any medication, can cause side effects,” she said. “But a decision not to immunize a child also involves risk. The child could get a disease that could be dangerous or even deadly.”
With the exception of pertussis, vaccine-preventable diseases are rare in Montana, she said, “precisely because health-care providers have done a great job providing vaccine.”
“That doesn’t mean we can lower our guard. We still face the threat of diseases imported by visitors from areas where they are still commonplace.”
Burgett urged parents who are concerned about the safety of immunizations to visit with their health-care provider or the local health department or to review information on reliable Web sites, such as:
Immunization Action Coalition: www.immunize.org
National Network for Immunization Information: www.immunizationinfo.org
Page last updated: 08/24/2006
