This week, many Indiana schools began sending kids home if they failed to show proof of their state-required immunizations. The move comes in response to a state law, which was in place last year but wasn't enforced by all.
Though more schools are on board this time, the confusion over who holds districts accountable remains murky. Nurses in schools across the Hamilton Southeastern District spent Wednesday making calls to parents offering one last reminder to get their kids vaccinated or to keep them home.
"Today is the last day that you can attend without the immunizations that you need to be in school," said student services director Michael Beresford. "The 20 day waiver ends today."
Last year, that same state law and waiver caused a mass confusion among parents along with a last minute demand for shots that health departments struggled to keep up with. Hamilton Southeastern and Carmel districts let the deadline come and go without enforcing it due to the lack of resources.
This year is different, though. Beginning Thursday, Hamilton Southeastern is set to exclude 56 students until they show proof of their shots.
Earlier in the week, Carmel sent roughly 70 kids home. Three days later, a Carmel spokesperson said all of their students are back in school. Hamilton Southeastern hopes their phone calls will lead to the same result.
"Our school nurses have been communicating and over communicating," Beresford said. "I call it politely nagging."
In Indianapolis, where 33 schools don't even have nurses, the task is a lot more difficult.
According to IPS, there are still about 5,000 students without proof of their immunizations, and the deadline for excluding students from school is coming up on Monday.
Last year, IPS pushed back the deadline, but after many students failed to take part in massive vaccination clinics, the district decided to enforce the law and sent thousands of kids home.
At the time, Fox59 News talked to State Health Commissioner Dr. Gregory Larkin about how schools were supposed to be enforcing the law.
"It isn't our intention to exclude children from attending school if their vaccination history is not complete within that 20 day window," Larkin said.
This year, a department of health spokesperson said that view hasn't changed. A spokesperson for the Department of Education, which also works with schools on compliance, said that they leave it up to schools to enforce the law. Neither agency said they take any action if a school fails to comply.
"The State Department of Health says that they make these laws, but they don't enforce them," said Rae Wallis, head of nursing for IPS. "The Department of Education says that they want kids in school, so we're in between a rock and a hard place."
IPS expects many of the 5,000 students without proof of their shots, to comply by the Monday deadline. If not they will be sent home.
In order to comply with the law a student must at least notify the school of a doctor's appointment to obtain the required shots. Students may also obtain a medical or religious waiver.
Parents in Marion County are told to call the Marion County Health Depatment in order to find out where to get the immunizations. Please call 221-2122 for more information.
More schools enforcing state vaccination law, sending kids home
This week, many Indiana schools began sending kids home if they failed to show proof of their state-required immunizations.
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Sarcasm at 10:12 PM September 15, 2011
You also failed to point out that the reason that a lot of these illness that were virtually wipe out here in the US are making a come back is because of people from other countries (hmm mexico)are not vaccinated and there for are put all other children at risk . Those are the facts as told to me by a pediatrician ......Whopping cough and chicken pox are good examples .
VTScienceguy at 1:53 PM September 15, 2011
As a reminder, there is currently no link between vaccination and Autism. The study was thrown out becauuse (1) the lead investigator falsified both his methods and results, and (2) there was a serious cause of conflict of interest in that the researcher was a founding member of a vaccine company that produces thimerosal-free vaccines (thimerosal being the chemical in vaccines that is believed to cause autism).
People often say that the rise in autism over the last 30 years mirrors the use of thimerosal in vaccinations, but think of all of the other changes to our environment that have occured-preservatives in food, hormones being released into the environment, pesticide use, etc... If thimerosal were the link, we would see much greater instances of autism as a result than we do. Also, the diagnosis for autism is better known than it was 30 years ago. Having our students required to be vaccinated is a small price to pay to prevent another local or even global outbreak of a deadly disease. Vaccines save lives, period. Without them, we'd still be dying of horrible diseases like small pox.
wibrahdd at 12:02 PM September 15, 2011
What terrible reporting. This short sentence at the end of this pro-vaccine, biased article "Students may also obtain a medical or religious waiver" is THE most important and neglected issue here.
As usual, this critical information which is part of the law, is minimized by giving it a bare whisper.
If the schools intent is to follow the law, then how simple to just offer the parents the truth and take their waivers. No, their intent is to vaccinate under the guise of educating.
