(LEX 18) — Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows more parents are choosing to not vaccinate their children against certain diseases, like measles, polio, and whooping cough.
Fewer kindergarteners received the MMR (Measles, mumps and rubella) vaccine last year than before the pandemic. The CDC cites falling rates in both Kentucky and nationwide.
During the 2023-24 school year, just 90% of Kentucky kindergartners received the MMR vaccine, down from over 93% during the 2019-20 school year.
Nationwide, the number is down to 92.7%.
Both are below the CDC's target of 95% vaccination rate for a healthy community immunization level.
Similar trends have continued for DTaP (diptheria, tetanus and pertussis) and polio vaccines since the pandemic.
It comes as the nation saw 284 cases of measles last year, and over 32,000 cases or whooping cough (pertussis).
This week, we put an all-call out to parents on Facebook, asking them if they are vaccinating their children or not, and why.
The answers were mixed.
"Parents have the right to choose what is best for their children," one parent wrote.
"I trust science," wrote another.
Just Wednesday, U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary nominee, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., faced tough questions about his reputation as a vaccine skeptic during a confirmation hearing.
"I support the measles vaccine. I support the polio vaccine. I will do nothing as HHS secretary that makes it difficult or discourages people from taking it," Kennedy said.
In Kentucky, MMR, Polio and DTaP are among vaccines required for children in school, but families can request religious or medical exemptions.
