Childhood vaccinations drop during pandemic may raise risk of other illnesses when schools reopen, CDC says

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Thu, 2021-06-10 19:21 — mike kraft

Drop in childhood vaccinations during pandemic may raise risk of other outbreaks when schools reopen, CDC says The American Academy of Pediatrics calls on parents to get their children up-to-date on shots before they return to class. Lena H. Sun Washington Post

Routine childhood vaccinations dropped dramatically during the early months of the coronavirus pandemic, and although they began rebounding last summer as families rescheduled doctors’ visits, many children and adolescents are behind on their shots, according to a federal health report released Thursday.

The lag might pose “a serious public health threat” of outbreaks of vaccine-preventable illnesses, such as measles and whooping cough, that have the potential to derail school-reopenings, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

With health-care systems overburdened, CDC is recommending that providers give coronavirus vaccines on the same day as other vaccines, especially when children and teens are behind or in danger of falling behind on recommended shots. The CDC changed its guidance last month to allow for coronavirus shots to be given at the same time as others.

The American Academy of Pediatrics also called on parents Thursday to get their children up-to-date on routine shots as families prepare for the return of in-person classes in the fall.

“We understand many families understandably delayed visits to their doctors during the pandemic,” Yvonne Maldonado, who chairs the group’s committee on infectious diseases, said in a statement. “We urge families to get their children caught up with their routine immunizations now. States have begun opening up, and as families move about in their community, we are concerned that we could see outbreaks of measles, whooping cough and other life-threatening diseases that could spread rapidly.”

The CDC data from 10 jurisdictions provides further evidence of the pandemic’s impact on routine childhood and adolescent vaccination rates, which were documented last year as parents across the country canceled well-child checkups to avoid coronavirus exposure. ...

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