New figures released by the CDC in the United States revealed that the vaccination coverage for kindergarten children was near complete in the country.
New figures released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States revealed that the vaccination coverage for kindergarten children was near complete in the country. According to the figures collected from 49 states and District of Columbia, more than 95 percent of kindergarten children were vaccinated for diphtheria, tetanus, acellular pertussis, polio and hepatitis B during the 2011-2012 school year. The figures are in tune with the Healthy People 2020 targets, a 10-year program announced by the federal government which sets the aim of 95 percent vaccination coverage.
Even though goals for a number of vaccines have been met, the CDC said that vaccination coverage for measles, mumps and rubella vaccine (MMR) and chicken pox is below the Healthy People 2020 targets with Colorado having the least coverage at 86.6 percent for MMR vaccination compared to Texas’ 99.3 percent.
“Although statewide levels of vaccination coverage are at or very near target levels, locally low vaccination coverage for extremely transmissible diseases such as measles remains a threat to public health”, the CDC said in a statement.
Source-Medindia