Aug. 18--TEMPERANCE -- A trip to the doctor's office will be on some back-to-school lists.
Rule changes enacted by the Michigan Legislature now require that incoming kindergarten students, sixth graders, and students changing school districts get inoculated with selected vaccines.
Roxann Satkowski, a district nurse with Bedford Public Schools, said letters informing parents about the changes were sent home in May.
"We knew the changes were coming before the end of the school year," she said. "They should get the shots before they head back to school."
The rules involve three more mandatory vaccines.
Students entering the sixth grade and others ages 11 to 18 who are changing districts are required to get inoculated for chicken pox, tetanus, diphtheria, and whooping cough, which are covered by the Tdap vaccine, and the vaccine for meningococcal disease.
Also, children entering kindergarten, all sixth graders, and children changing school districts are required to receive two doses of chickenpox, or Varicella, vaccine.
The first of two immunization clinics conducted by the Monroe County Health Department will be Wednesday.
The cost for the clinic, which will be from 4-6 p.m. at 2353 South Custer Rd. in Monroe, is $10 per shot.
The next clinic will be Sept. 1, also from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m., at the health department.
Mrs. Satkowski urged parents to contact their primary-care physician to schedule the vaccinations or attend the county health department clinics.
The Michigan Department of Community Health has reported a significant increase in the cases of pertussis, also known as whooping cough, in the state over the past two years.
The reported 315 pertussis cases nearly tripled to 902 cases in 2009, and the agency has gotten reports on more than 500 cases so far this year.
Kim Comerzan, nurse and personal health director at the Monroe County Health Department, said a similar trend has emerged locally. "We typically don't see cases of pertussis, but there has been an increase compared to previous years," she said.sis cases nearly tripled to 902 cases in 2009, and the agency has gotten reports on more than 500 cases so far this year.
Kim Comerzan, nurse and personal health director at the Monroe County Health Department, said a similar trend has emerged locally.
"We typically don't see cases of pertussis, but there has been an increase compared to previous years," she said.
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