The Southern Nevada Health District is urging parents to beat the back-to-school rush by bringing their pre-schoolers, kindergartners, and 7th graders for mandatory vaccinations at one of its conveniently located public health centers. For information, contact the health district’s immunization clinic, (702) 759-0850 or visit www.SNHD.info.
Summer is an excellent time to review immunization records for both parents and children in order to ensure vaccinations are up to date for everyone, including the DTaP vaccine for children and the Tdap booster for adolescents and adults, both protect against pertussis (whooping cough). The Southern Nevada Health District advises parents and caregivers who bring their children to the health district to update their pertussis vaccinations, including adults who care for or live with infants.
Pertussis case counts continue to increase across the country. Since January, there have been 31 cases reported to the health district and a total of 121 cases reported in 2013. The neighboring state of California recently announced 4,500-plus cases of pertussis since the beginning of year, far surpassing the total number of cases in 2013, of 2,532. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is reporting 9,964 cases of pertussis from January 1-June 16, 2014, in the U.S.; a 24 percent increase compared with the same time period in 2013.
Parents vaccinating their child at a health district clinic should bring immunization records. Parents who cannot locate their children’s immunization records should contact their health care provider. They can also visit Nevada WebIZ, a statewide immunization registry, www.izrecord.nv.gov or call Nevada WebIZ at (1-877) 689-3249. Non-custodial adults may accompany a child, however, written consent must be provided to the health district from the parent or guardian at the time of service. An administrative fee may apply depending upon insurance status. Contact the health district’s immunization clinic for information and current administrative fees.
Immunizations are available Monday – Friday at all health district locations. On Saturday, Aug. 23, a special back-to-school immunization clinic is scheduled at the health district’s main facility, 330 S. Valley View from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m.
Mesquite Public Health Center, 830 Hafen Lane, Mesquite
Tuesday and Thursday, 8 a.m. – noon and 1 p.m. – 4 p.m.
The Clark County School District requires the following vaccinations for students enrolling in public or private school: chickenpox (varicella); hepatitis A; hepatitis B; polio; tetanus-diphtheria-pertussis (Tdap); and measles-mumps-rubella (MMR). Parents who have recently moved to Nevada should note the chickenpox and hepatitis A vaccinations are not required in all states, so immunizations that were up-to-date in other states might not be current in Nevada. The health district also suggests a second dose of the chickenpox vaccine for school-age children as recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Children entering the Clark County School District for the first time, no matter which grade they are entering, are now required to have a second dose of the chickenpox vaccine and a fourth dose of polio vaccine. If the fourth dose of polio vaccine is given BEFORE the child’s fourth birthday, it is invalid for school admission.
Children entering seventh grade must be immunized against Bordetella pertussis. The health district provides the Tdap (tetanus-diphtheria-pertussis) vaccine to meet the mandate. College freshmen younger than 24 years old who will live in on-campus housing at a Nevada college or university are required to receive the Neisseria meningiditis (Meningococcus) vaccine.
