ORLANDO, Fla. — As school districts continue to talk about how children will stay safe when they return to the classroom amid COVID-19, parents are being warned to prepare for other viruses.
While COVID-19 concerns have kept many families out of their doctor’s offices, doctors said the immunization rate for children is lower than it’s been in years.
“As a result, the immunization rate of children entering school is lower than it’s ever been in many, many years,” said Dr. Kenneth Alexander, chief of infectious disease at Nemours Children’s Hospital.
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Data from the Florida Department of Health show pediatric vaccinations dropped 15% in March and 40% in April. Stay-at-home orders were in place during those months so doctors like Alexander are hoping data for June and July looks better.
Free immunization evens are being held across the area. One in Orange County allows children to get the vaccines they need before returning to school. This week, officials vaccinated more than 1,300 kids.
“We want to prevent an outbreak within an outbreak,” Dr. Raul Pino said.
It’s a scary thought. “If you think about it, we are dependent on tourism, would you bring your child to central Florida if there was a measles outbreak?” Alexander said.
Most parents would say probably not.
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“This has big financial ramifications for who we are as well as how we care for our children,” Alexander said. “This is something that parents have to understand not only impacts the health of their children but because of our economy will hit them in the wallet.”
Children of different ages require different vaccines to return to school, but Pino said regardless of a student’s age, “We will be insisting on flu vaccinations for this fall.”
The Orange County free immunization even runs through Aug. 8 at West Oaks Mall.
Click here to learn more about the event.
Cox Media Group
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