US kindergarten vaccine exemptions jumped last school year, CDC reports

Forty-one states and Washington, DC, experienced a spike in exemptions, and 24 states saw more than 5% of their kindergarten students exempted. The steady creep of vaccine exemptions could lead to more outbreaks. 

“The reason we managed to eliminate measles in the United States is because we overcame how infectious the virus is with very high rates of vaccination,” Marrazzo said. “If you can’t immunize the majority of people—and the majority of people is probably close to 94%, 95%, depending on which model you use—you can’t really get ahead of that intense rate of transmission.” 

Feds send confusing messages

The press release accompanying the data suggests that parents talk with their doctors about vaccination but didn’t discuss the importance of routine vaccination in limiting the spread of illness. 

“The statement is a pathetic shadow of what the CDC should be saying about vaccines in the context of the biggest measles outbreak we’ve experienced … in recent memory,” Marrazzo said. “It leaves parents in this incredibly nebulous, uninformed, insecure area, and I was actually frankly mortified when I saw it.” 

Local public health leaders also expressed dismay with CDC’s vague message. 

“I can’t say that I was surprised by the short announcement, the very abbreviated announcement that the CDC shared about the vaccine coverage. Nor was I really surprised by the rates,” Mysheika Roberts, MD, MPH, commissioner of Columbus Public Health in Ohio, said during a Big Cities Health Coalition press briefing. 

“It just reaffirms that the CDC is no longer the trusted health agency that many of us were trained to rely on and to admire,” she added.

Sean O’Leary, MD, MPH, the immunization schedule editor for the AAP’s Committee on Infectious Diseases, noted this is what he expected from federal health leaders.

“I was absolutely not surprised either. I do want to, though, mention that clearly that is coming from HHS [Department of Health and Human Services] leadership,” he said. “There are still many fantastic CDC employees and scientists who are still at the agency, and really they’re my heroes. They are undergoing such a difficult time right now, and yet still doing the work.” 

This follows more than a year of confusing communications about vaccines from the federal government. 

In January, the HHS reduced the recommended number of vaccines from 17 to 11, with the six being recommended for children at high risk. A federal judge blocked those changes in March. 

Last week President Donald Trump signed an executive order to “break up” the MMR vaccine into individual shots and recommend that children receive one per visit. No evidence supports these measures, which would mean more doctors’ visits and higher costs for families. 

Marrazzo said that parents seeking reliable information on vaccines should turn to organizations such as the AAP, the American College of Obstetricians & Gynecologists, IDSA, and the American College of Physicians. 

“If you look at the guidance of every single one of those groups, you’re going to see consistency,” she said. “What I would really like to convey to people is that physicians have your back.”

This story was updated on August 19 with additional quotes from a Big Cities Health Coalition press briefing.