Michigan parents urged to catch up children on vaccines as the school year begins

Vaccination rates are at historic lows, which means kids are at increased risk

LANSING, Mich. - Michigan public health leaders are urging parents to get their children caught up on vaccinations prior to returning to classes this fall, to prevent outbreaks of serious communicable diseases such as measles, mumps, pertussis, chickenpox and more.

Vaccination rates for Michigan children ages 19 to 36 months have fallen below 70% in more than half of the state (47 of 83 counties), according to July 2024 data from the Michigan Care Improvement Registry.

"Parents should know their child's risk going into the new school year. We're seeing some of the lowest vaccination rates in more than a decade, which puts our schools and communities at risk," said Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian, chief medical executive for the State of Michigan.

Families are traveling more, both out-of-state and internationally, which means an increased risk of illness. In February, Michigan reported its first case of measles in five years, when an Oakland County child who had traveled internationally tested positive for measles. Since then, Michigan has reported another six cases of measles in 2024, and annual whooping cough reported cases are double what they were for all of 2023.

One case of a vaccine-preventable disease can spark an outbreak. A measles outbreak in the Chicago area sickened 67 individuals in the spring of 2024, the majority of whom were children. Nationwide, there have been 219 measles cases in the US through August 15, 2024, 45% of the cases have required hospitalization and 87% were unvaccinated. There have been 13 documented measles outbreaks so far in 2024, compared to four total outbreaks reported in 2023.

Vaccination rates of younger children dropped during the pandemic. The most recent data from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) shows that only 70.2% of children aged 19 to 36 months have completed their recommended doses in the primary childhood vaccine series.

The 10 areas of the state with the lowest vaccination rates for children ages 19 to 36 months are:

Keweenaw County (36.8%), Oscoda County (38.2%), Mackinac County (54.2%), Houghton County (55.4%), Gladwin County (55.6%), the City of Detroit (55.7%), Lake County (57.8%), Clare County (58.8%), Sanilac County (58.9%) and Baraga County (59.1%). The City of Detroit has its own health department located within Wayne County.

When less than 70% of children are vaccinated in a particular community, pockets of low vaccination create an environment where diseases can take hold and spread. Public health officials are most concerned when children who have not yet received all school-required vaccines are clustered together in the same school building. The number of Michigan elementary schools with kindergarten vaccination rates below 70% increased from 2015 to 2023 (from 86 to 109 schools). During those same years, the number of Michigan middle schools with 7^th grade vaccination rates below 70% more than doubled (from 48 to 110 schools). Parents can know their child's risk by downloading their school's vaccination data here.

"This means that kids attending school this year are more susceptible to vaccine-preventable diseases. This not only could have severe health impacts for under-vaccinated children, or those with medical vulnerabilities, but also means schools, children and parents are more likely to experience disruption of routine instruction this school year," said Dr. Bagdasarian.

"We can send our kids to school safely this year by getting them caught up on the CDC-recommended vaccination schedule before the first day, so we can minimize the spread of preventable diseases," said Veronica McNally, president of the Franny Strong Foundation and founder of the I Vaccinate campaign. "As a mother myself, I'm asking parents to take this opportunity before school begins to protect their children, as well as their classmates, through vaccination."

The CDC and the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recommends the COVID-19 vaccine and an annual flu vaccine for everyone 6 months of age and older as part of the recommended vaccination childhood and adolescent schedules.

Michigan parents with vaccination questions can find answers based entirely on medical science at IVaccinate.org. Parents can download the CDC-recommended vaccination schedule for children and adolescents for reference ahead of doctor's office visits.

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The nationally recognized I Vaccinate campaign is a joint public-private effort of the Franny Strong Foundation and MDHHS and is supported by the CDC and every major medical and health organization in the state, including the Michigan Academy of Family Physicians, Michigan Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, Michigan Health & Hospital Association, Michigan Osteopathic Association and Michigan State Medical Society. For more information, visit IVaccinate.org. Follow I Vaccinate on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @IVaccinateMI.

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