Overview
- A state vaccination survey released Wednesday found kindergarten measles coverage edged up to 93.3% while overall kindergarten and 7th-grade coverage remained just above 92% and below pre-pandemic levels.
- Conscientious exemptions grew by about 20,000 students to more than 150,000 statewide, pushing the kindergarten exemption rate to 4.45% after lawmakers allowed parents to download exemption forms under House Bill 1586.
- Eighteen fewer counties met the 95% measles herd-immunity benchmark and the number of counties with at least 5% kindergarten exemptions rose from 98 to 132, leaving many local communities vulnerable to outbreaks.
- Data gaps complicate the picture: the survey covered 87.7% of schools and a rising ‘delinquency’ category—students not up to date or missing records—means reported rates may understate or overstate true immunity depending on later paperwork.
- Public-health experts flagged a separate rise in polio exemptions, which have doubled since the pandemic to 4.59% for kindergarteners, because low local coverage could allow serious, preventable illnesses to re-emerge.