| Health officials are struggling to get the
word out about new vaccination policies that will require many Bexar
County schoolchildren to be vaccinated against hepatitis A before
the next school year starts in August.
The Texas Department of Health added the requirement earlier this
year, after disease surveillance showed the incidence of hepatitis A
in Bexar County was increasing.
Children born on or after Sept. 2, 1992, who reside in the county
will be required to receive two doses of hepatitis A vaccine
administered on or after their second birthday.
The shots must be given at least six months apart, which means
children must get their first shot by February in order to have the
series completed before school begins.
Health officials have notified school nurses and clinics, but
they don't know whether the message is getting through, said Tom
Fink, a public health adviser with the federal Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention who works at the Bexar County Metropolitan
Health District.
“We’re trying to encourage health care providers and parents not
to wait because the shots do have to be given six months apart,”
Fink said.
ctumiel@express-news.net |
