PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The percentage of Philadelphia public kindergarten students who have all of their state-mandated inoculations at enrollment is slipping, according to state data.
Two years ago, 89.7% of those students had all five of their required vaccinations at enrollment. In the 2021-22 school year, it was down to 82%, said School District of Philadelphia System Medical Officer Dr. Kendra McDow.
The required vaccinations include:
- DTap (Diphtheria, tetanus and acellular pertussis).
- Polio.
- Measles, mumps and rubella.
- Hepatitis B.
- Varicella.
“It is concerning that we are seeing these national trends in decreased vaccination completion upon entry into kindergarten,” she said. “We definitely have seen a decline over the past two years.”
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The district gives parents a 30-day grace period to schedule inoculations for their children.
“We did see during the pandemic that people were less likely to go to their doctors for a multitude of reasons,” Dr. McDow said.
Parents may also seek exemptions for religious or philosophical reasons.
With New York state last week declaring an emergency because of polio, Dr. McDow said it’s important that children are inoculated against preventable diseases.
“These vaccines do work,” she said. “Unfortunately with the decrease in vaccination coverage, we are starting to see the emergence of vaccine-preventable diseases like measles and like polio.”
According to state data, 157 Philadelphia students were ultimately excluded from school last year because they didn’t have all of their shots.
Dr. McDow said the district held 16 vaccination events over the summer, and is continuing to hold in-school vaccination clinics to get students caught up.
“Our school nurses, our school administrators definitely follow up with parents to help them be connected to their primary care doctor, to the city health clinics so that they can get their vaccines,” she said.
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