Time to check vaccinations before school starts - 13 WTHR Indianapolis

This is a short summer season for some schools. And for parents, that means making that back-to-school checklist now. One of the most important items on that list should be vaccinations. And there's no time to waste. 

Before your kids can walk through the door of their school to start a new year, they have to be up-to-date on their immunizations. 

You might remember, last year the state mandated new requirements for vaccinations and it created some confusion for parents. Many kids weren't current on vaccinations when school started, even though the health departments and schools set up special clinics to offer those vaccinations.
    
This year, you should double check your child's health records to make sure they are up-to-date.  Health officials say that's especially true for kindergarten through second grade.

"There are two doses of the chicken pox or varicella vaccine required for kindergarten and first graders and this year," said Melissa McMasters of the Marion County Health Department. "We're bumping it up to include second graders as well, so they need two doses of vaccine or proof of the disease."

It was the two doses, not just the one that was previously required, that created some confusion last year.

And if you have a sixth grader, health officials recommend you make sure they are up-to-date on the T-DAP, or tetanus/diphtheria/pertussis booster, because pertussis cases have doubled in the U.S. recently.
    
If you are not sure whether your child is up-to-date, now is the time to check. 

Click this link.