NJ Mandates Flu Shots for Preschoolers
By Mary Ann McGann
Within the last year (2008), New Jersey became the first and only state in the nation to mandate an annual flu shot for all youngsters attending a licensed preschool or daycare center. This new amendment to the state’s immunization rules goes into effect September 1, 2008 requiring that any child age 6 months to 59 months (or 4 years, 11 months) must receive a minimum of one dose of flu vaccine each year.
“Young children are among those at high risk for flu complications,” say officials at the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS). “Epidemiologic studies suggest that young children, including those in the preschool age range, are particularly efficient at transmitting influenza to their close contacts, including other children, adults, and elderly persons who may be at similarly high risk for complications from influenza infection. This new requirement addresses the need to stop flu transmission at a potential source.”
Parents have until December 31, 2008 to have their preschooler (or an infant in daycare) immunized with the flu vaccine—provided there are no vaccine shortages or distribution delays. If you can’t meet that deadline, the school or daycare facility will need a note from your healthcare provider within two weeks, stating the reasons why you can’t comply, and a scheduled appointment date for the flu shot to be given.
“The [Health] Department’s goal is not to exclude anyone,” say state health officials. “But if the child does not receive the vaccine in a reasonable period, he/she will be asked to leave school.”
Two options
There are two options for immunization available for preschool-age children:
- The flu shot, an inactivated vaccine that contains the killed virus and is given with an injection.
- A nasal-spray vaccine, which is made with a live, weakened flu virus.
In addition, you may ask for a preservative-free vaccine, which does not contain mercury, in either the shot or the nasal spray. If your healthcare provider doesn’t have the preservative-free vaccine, check with your local health department to see who might.
Early childhood vaccines no longer contain thimerosal, a form of mercury used as a preservative in certain medications. However, some flu vaccines still use it in small amounts. Some researchers and parents believe there is a link between thimerosal and autism, while other studies have found no such link. Noted pediatrician
Dr. Bob Sears, author of
The Vaccine Book: Making the Right Decision for Your Child (Little Brown, 2007), suggests parents ask their healthcare provider for the single-dose version of
Fluzone—the only 100 percent mercury-free brand of flu vaccine. The 10-dose bottle of Fluzone, he says, still contains mercury.
The best months
This new requirement for New Jersey children echoes the recommendation of the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which says that while the flu shot is not approved for infants under 6 months old, it can go a long way in preventing serious illness in children ages 6 months to 5 years. The CDC estimates more than 20,000 children under age 5 are hospitalized for flu every year.
October or November are the best months to get the flu shot, says the CDC. And it says children 6 months to 9 years old who are getting inoculated for the first time will need two doses of the vaccine this year, with the first dose ideally administered in September.
At the public hearings preceding the adoption of the immunization amendments, some parents worried aloud, and in writing, about the quality and safety of the flu vaccine, expressing the importance of parental choice and their wish to be allowed to lodge a “philosophical” objection. Currently, parents are allowed to opt out of the flu shot for children only for medical or religious reasons.
“I’m not happy about it,” said one mom last spring while picking up her two daughters at a preschool in Somerset County, New Jersey. “They’ve [my daughters] had enough shots at this point. That’s why I chose not to give them the flu shot in the past.”
“I’m okay with it,” said another mom, as she corralled her three children—ages 5 and under. But, she said, she would feel better if there were greater proof that the mandatory flu shot meant her kids would definitely not get the flu. There is no such guarantee.
Mary Ann McGann is a senior writer for family. She and her family live in New Jersey.
August 2008