As schools and universities across the state begin the school year, the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) reminds parents how essential routine vaccinations are in light of the COVID-19 pandemic that has affected routine clinical care. Children need to be up to date on the vaccines outlined in the South Carolina Immunization Requirements for Childcare and School before they may attend school. All children need protection whether they attend school in-person or virtually, and the agency provides low-cost vaccines to those who qualify.
“Similar to the rest of the country, South Carolina saw a reduction in routine pediatric vaccine orders and administered doses during the months of March and April in 2020,” said Dr. Linda Bell, State Epidemiologist. “Vaccination is one of the most successful public health interventions in history for reducing disease spread and preventing complications and deaths from vaccine-preventable diseases. With COVID-19’s prevalence across our state, we need to keep our children healthy and safe at all costs, and we must use the vaccines that medical science has afforded us to help prevent illnesses likes mumps, measles, chicken pox, and whooping cough.”
A hepatitis A vaccine is a new requirement for children for the 2020-2021 school year. Find a list of required and recommend vaccinations for school and child care https://www.scdhec.gov/health/vaccinations/childcare-school-vaccine-requirements.
Parents should contact their child’s doctor for a vaccine history and DHEC provides low-cost vaccinations to eligible children, as provided https:// www.scdhec.gov/ health/vaccinations/dhec-vaccine-programs-eligibility.
“Children’s routine vaccinations cannot be forgotten and have never been more important,” Bell said.
“There is no vaccine for COVID-19, and one of the few things we can do to protect ourselves from this deadly virus is to stay as healthy as possible and avoid contracting vaccine-preventable diseases that can severely complicate the outcome for those who could become ill and also contract COVID-19.”