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New Pennsylvania school vaccination rules take effect this year

New school vaccination requirements in Pennsylvania will go into effect in August, and that could mean students without the required doses may be asked to go home.

The new requirements primarily affect students entering kindergarten, seventh grade and 12th grade.

Students are only exempt from having their vaccinations if they have a medical reason, religious belief, or philosophical or strong moral or ethical conviction.

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The Pennsylvania Department of Health said even if a student is exempt from immunizations, the student still might be excluded from school during an outbreak of a disease that is preventable with a vaccine.

If a student does not have all of the required doses, the student must receive those doses within the first five days of school or risk exclusion.

Previously, the regulations allowed a child to be provisionally admitted to school even though the child did not have all the required immunizations for entry or continued attendance for eight months before facing exclusion.

The following vaccines are required for attendance in Pennsylvania schools: (continued below video) 

For all grades: 

  • 4 doses of tetanus, diphtheria and acellular pertussis* (1 dose on or after the 4th birthday)
  • 4 doses of polio (4th dose on or after 4th birthday and at least 6 months after previous dose given) **
  • 2 doses of measles, mumps, rubella ***
  • 3 doses of hepatitis B
  • 2 doses of varicella (chickenpox) or evidence of immunity

* Usually given as DTP or DTaP or DT or Td

**A 4th dose not necessary if the 3rd dose was administered at age 4 years or older and at least 6 months after the previous dose

*** Usually given as MMR

7th Grade: 

  • 1 dose of tetanus, diphtheria, acellular pertussis (Tdap) on the first day of seventh grade
  • 1 dose of meningococcal conjugate vaccine (MCV) on the first day of seventh grade

12th Grade: 

  • 1 dose of meningococcal conjugate vaccine (MCV) on the first day of 12th grade. If one dose was given at 16 years of age or older, that will count as the 12th- grade dose.

The vaccines required for entrance, seventh grade and 12th grade continue to be required in each succeeding school year. 

 

Cox Media Group

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