Vaccine hesitancy, driven by the pandemic, is behind the startling decrease in kindergarten vaccination rates in the U.S.
The news: Kindergarten vaccination rates dropped to 95% in the 2019-2020 school year when schools were closed. But instead of rebounding when schools reopened, the rate fell further to 94% in 2020-2021 and 93% in 2021-2022, says CDC data released Friday.
We’re below recommended herd immunity for measles. The measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine is required for school attendance in every state, and achieving community protection against measles requires a 95% vaccination rate, says the World Health Organization (WHO).
A case study: A measles outbreak in Central Ohio, which started in November, has caused 85 cases among children, most aged five or younger; 34 were hospitalized. Of these children, 78 had not received a vaccine, six had only received one of two doses, and one has unknown vaccine status.
Why it’s happening: COVID-19 debates over vaccine mandates “appear to have had an impact on public attitudes towards MMR vaccine requirements for public schools,” says the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF). Their survey last month found 71% of adults believe healthy children should get the MMR vaccine, down from 84% in a 2019 poll.
The bottom line: vaccines work. “In 1921 alone, diphtheria killed nearly 15,000 people in the U.S. and measles infected nearly every citizen, killing hundreds,” but today both are nearly unheard of, says Vaccinate Your Family. Other health threats, like measles and polio, can be kept at bay—but only if children are vaccinated.
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