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For Immediate Release
Friday, August 13, 2004
TIME TO CHECK ON IMMUNIZATIONS REQUIRED FOR
SCHOOL ENTRANCE
DENVER – As preparations are made for children to head back to the
classroom, the state health director Friday reminded parents and guardians
to make certain their children have had all the immunizations required for
their age group before they return to school or are enrolled in preschool
or school for the first time.
Douglas H. Benevento, the executive director of the Colorado Department of
Public Health and Environment, said, “Some children in Colorado are not
receiving the vaccines they need prior to enrolling in school. We can and
must do better in order to prevent childhood diseases from returning in
Colorado.”
Benevento further noted that immunizations
for the child's age also are required for enrollment at a childcare
center, beginning at two months of age.
The requirements include:
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Chickenpox (Varicella): The requirement for this vaccine, which first
became mandatory in Colorado on July 1, 2000, is being gradually phased
in, although health officials recommend that the vaccine be administered
to all children and youth up to the age of 18 who have not had the
disease. However, one immunization for chickenpox currently is required
for children 18 months to four years of age for entrance into preschool
and for children entering kindergarten; first; second; third; and fourth
grades. History from a parent or guardian that the child already has had
the disease may be reported in lieu of vaccination.
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Diphtheria/Tetanus/Pertussis: The requirement that Colorado children
have five doses of diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis (DTaP) vaccine, when
they enter a Colorado school for the first time, is being reinstated by
the Colorado Board of Health, effective September 1, 2004. This means that
children entering school in the state for the first time after September 1
this year will need to be up-to-date on these vaccinations, which they may
have missed because of a nation-wide shortage of the vaccine. Because of
that shortage, the Colorado Board of Health in April 2001 temporarily
suspended the requirement for the fourth and fifth doses of DTaP, usually
administered to older children. However, as the supply of DTaP vaccine has
returned to normal, Colorado public health officials have recommended that
the state’s children receive the fourth and fifth doses of DTaP. However,
until September 1 of this year, the last two doses were not mandatory.
During the shortage, it was recommended that the available vaccine be used
to provide the initial three DTaP immunizations to infants from two to six
months of age.
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Haemophilus Influenzae Type B (Hib): This vaccine is a preschool
requirement for children five years of age or younger but is not required
for older children. One, two or three doses of this vaccine are required,
depending on both the child's current age and the age when the vaccine was
administered.
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Measles, Mumps and Rubella (MMR): In general, two doses of this vaccine
are required for kindergarten and the first; second; third; fourth; and
seventh through 12th grades. One dose is required for grades four through
six.
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Polio: In general, three doses of this vaccine are required for children
entering preschool. Grade school, middle school and high school students
entering a Colorado school for the first time are required to have four
doses of this vaccine.
Parents and guardians are advised to be certain to take immunization
records with them when enrolling a child in a Colorado school for the
first time.
Benevento explained that when the school determines that a child's
immunizations are incomplete, parents have 14 days after receiving
notification from the school for their child to receive the first required
immunization and to present to the school a written plan for completion of
the remaining immunizations.
The state health director said that Colorado law permits schools to
suspend students until receiving proof that the immunization requirements
have been completed or are in process. The state's schools also may deny
attendance to students who do not present an immunization record at the
beginning of school.
However, he also noted that under Colorado law, parents may choose to have
their children exempted from immunization requirements for medical,
religious or philosophical reasons. Exemption forms, which are required in
lieu of the certificate of immunization for those parents who choose
exemption, are on the reverse side of the state's Certificate of
Immunization and can be obtained from doctors' offices and at schools.
Parents are encouraged to consult with their health care provider about
immunizations.
Parents who obtain their children's care at public health clinics can call
the Department of Public Health and Environment's Family Healthline in the
Denver metropolitan area at (303) 692-2229, or outside metropolitan Denver
at 1-800-688-7777, to obtain information on locations and hours of these
clinics.
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