Georgia Coastal Health District

Let’s face it – nobody likes getting shots. But a shot lasts a second; diseases last much longer. Vaccines are the best defense against serious, preventable, and sometimes deadly contagious diseases. They help families and individuals avoid expensive therapies and hospitalizations to treat infectious diseases like influenza and meningitis. Immunizations also decrease absences from school and after-school activities, and decrease spreading illness into the home and throughout the school and the community.

The Georgia Department of Public Health’s inaugural Pre-Teen Vaccine Awareness Week coincides with new requirements in Georgia schools starting with the 2014-2015 academic year. Pre-Teen Vaccine Awareness Week promotes immunization specifically for 11- and 12-year old girls and boys.
According to the Georgia Department of Public Health Rule (511-2-2), all students born on or after January 1, 2002 entering or transferring into seventh grade and any “new entrant” into 8th-12th grades in Georgia need proof of an adolescent pertussis (whooping cough) booster vaccination (called “Tdap”) AND an adolescent meningococcal vaccination (MCV4). This law affects all public and private schools including, but not limited to charter schools, community schools, juvenile court schools and other alternative school settings (excluding homeschool).
“Preteens are becoming increasingly social. They go to overnight camps, attend parties and play team sports – they’re beginning to interact with a larger social circle. While these are all fun parts of being a teenager, they could also increase their risk for contracting potentially life-threatening diseases,” said Steven Mitchell, director for the Georgia Department of Public Health Immunization Office. “Couple this with the new school immunization requirements and it’s the ideal time to make sure your preteen is up-to-date on their vaccinations and protected for their future.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) currently recommends the following vaccines for preteens and teens:
• Tetanus, Diphtheria and Pertussis (Tdap)
• Influenza (flu)
• Human Papillomavirus (HPV) – three doses
• Meningococcal Disease (MCV4)
The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices currently recommends that 11 and 12-year-olds receive Tdap, meningococcal vaccine, three doses of HPV vaccine, and an annual flu vaccine. Some preteens may also need to catch up on other immunizations, including chickenpox (many don’t have their second dose), MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) and hepatitis B. Speak to your physician today about whether or not your pre-teen is up-to-date and, if not, make a date to vaccinate.
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For more information on the Vaccines for Children (VFC) program, a federally funded program that provides vaccines at no cost to children who might not otherwise be vaccinated because of inability to pay, visit http://dph.georgia.gov/vaccines-children or call (800)-848-3868.