All students registered by a parent must provide proof of immunizations against polio, measles, mumps and rubella (MMR), diphtheria, tetanus and whooping cough (DTap), hepatitis B (Hep B) and chickenpox (Varicella or proof of having had chickenpox) --- or --- a permanent medical exemption or personal beliefs exemption. Beginning with the 2011-12 school year, State law requires that all incoming 7th-12th graders get a booster shot, called Tdap, (which protects against whooping cough, tetanus, and diphtheria) before entering school.
For more information about the School Immunization Requirements, please see the www.sandi.net website “Enrollment” section under the “Students” tab.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: A decision to delay or reject vaccines comes an important responsibility that could save your child’s life, or the life of someone else.
- Any vaccine-preventable disease can strike at any time in the U.S. because all of these diseases still circulate either in the U.S. or elsewhere in the world.
- Sometimes vaccine-preventable diseases cause outbreaks, that is, clusters of cases in a given area.
- Some of the vaccine-preventable diseases that still circulate in the U.S. include whooping cough, chickenpox, Hib (a cause of meningitis), and influenza. These diseases, as well as the other vaccine-preventable diseases, can range from mild to severe and life-threatening. In most cases, there is no way to know beforehand if a child will get a mild or serious case.
- For some diseases, one case is enough to cause concern in a community. An example is measles, which is one of the most contagious diseases known. This disease spreads quickly among people who are not immune. Measles is so contagious that hours after an infected person has left the room, an unvaccinated person can get measles just by entering that room.
- Be aware that your child can catch diseases from people who don’t have any symptoms. For example, Hib meningitis can be spread from people who have the bacteria in their body but are not ill. You can’t tell who is contagious.
- Each disease is different, and the time between when your child might have been exposed to a disease and when he or she may get sick will vary. It may not be possible to avoid exposure.
Vaccines not associated with risk of autism: A new study evaluating parents’ concerns of “too many vaccines too soon” and autism has been published online in the Journal of Pediatrics [PDF - 203 KB], March 29, 2013. It adds to the conclusion of a 2004 comprehensive review by the Institute of Medicine that there is not a causal relationship between certain vaccine types and autism. The results provide relevant data for the current childhood immunization schedule.
