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NEW YORK (AP) — The proportion of U.S. kindergartners exempted from school vaccination requirements has hit its highest level ever, 3%, U.S. health officials said Thursday. Political Cartoons View All 1237 ImagesAll states allow exemptions for children with medical conditions that prevents them from receiving certain vaccines. But the percentage with nonmedical exemptions has inched up, lifting the overall exemption rate from 1.6% in the 2011-2012 school year to 3% last year. Hawaii saw the largest jump, with the exemption rate rising to 6.4%, nearly double the year before. One apparent paradox in the report: The national vaccination rate held steady even as exemptions increased.

Persons: kindergarteners, it’s, hasn’t, ”, Sean O’Leary, —, O’Leary, “, Shannon Stokley Organizations: Centers for Disease Control, Prevention, University of Colorado, CDC, West, American Academy of Pediatrics, Health, Associated Press Health, Science Department, Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science, Educational Media Group, AP Locations: COVID, Idaho, New York, Hawaii, Connecticut, Maine, U.S

Childhood vaccinations across the U.S fallen for a second year in a row, leaving hundreds of thousands of kids vulnerable to otherwise preventable illnesses. But fears stoked by vaccine misinformation have also been a growing problem, O'Leary said. "We're still trying to understand the extent to which misinformation around Covid vaccines has spread to misinformation about other childhood vaccines," he said. In a December interview, Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the CDC's director, told NBC News that vaccine misinformation is one of the biggest threats to public health. About a third of kids ages 5 through 11 have had two doses of a Covid vaccine.

☆ U.S. childhood vaccinations dip again in 2021-'22 school year -study
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Overall, those receiving state-required vaccinations declined to about 93% last year, down from 94% in the previous school year and 95% in the 2019-2020 school year, according to the CDC report. All U.S. states require the vaccine against measles and rubella and all but Iowa require a shots against mumps. All states also require the combined diphtheria, tetanus and acellular pertussis shot and the vaccine against poliovirus, while 49 states require inoculations against varicella, or chickenpox. Exemptions for vaccinations, which may be granted by states in cases where parents request them for their children remained low at 2.6%. O'Leary said the data points to U.S. needs for a focus on addressing access and poverty in order to increase vaccination rates.

Pharmacists and parents across the country are contending with empty shelves as they search for children’s pain relief medications amid the ongoing spread of RSV, flu and Covid. CVS and Walgreens each announced on Monday that they are limiting the number of children's pain relief medications customers can buy: CVS to two, and Walgreens to six. Courtesy Chantel JablonskiCaswell said shortages of children’s Tylenol and ibuprofen and their generic versions started a month or two ago. Johnson & Johnson Motrin brand children's pain relievers at a Stop & Shop store in Dobbs Ferry, N.Y., on Jan. 23, 2022. Khan said “this is probably the worst” shortage of children’s medicine he’s seen, surpassing even peak Covid.

☆ Measles outbreak in central Ohio grows to more than 50 children, driven by ‘lack of vaccination’
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Jacqueline Howard | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

CNN —A measles outbreak in central Ohio is growing, sickening more than 50 children, with many of them needing hospitalization, according to data updated Tuesday by Columbus Public Health. “Measles can be very serious, especially for children under age 5,” Columbus Public Health spokesperson Kelli Newman wrote in an email Monday. In the Ohio outbreak, the hospitalized children have been seen at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. “For measles, it is the most infectious disease we have,” she said. Pediatric hospitals already strainedWhile the measles outbreak spreads across central Ohio, the United States has been battling a surge of respiratory illnesses, such as flu and RSV, or respiratory syncytial virus, and the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

The Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday authorized updated Covid booster shots that target the omicron variant of the virus for young children. The decision will now go to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which could issue its final recommendation on the updated shots within hours. Only about 31% of children ages 5 to 11 have received two doses of any Covid vaccine, according to CDC data. Experts say it's important for people to receive the updated shots because the nation could face yet another potential wave of Covid infections this winter. The boosters are important because data has shown that any Covid vaccine greatly decreases the risk of severe outcomes from the virus, said O’Leary.

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