Vaccination rates among kindergarteners fall as exemptions rise to all-time high
The data, posted to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website Thursday, showed vaccination coverage among kindergartners during the 2024 to 2025 school year decreased for all reported vaccines from the year before.
According to the data, about 92.1% kindergartners got the diphtheria, tetanus and acellular pertussis vaccine (DTaP), and 92.5% received the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine (MMR) and polio vaccine — all down slightly from the previous school year.
These decreases come as the U.S. has recorded the most measles cases in more than 30 years. A large share of the infections were connected to a West Texas outbreak primarily affecting children and teenagers, nearly all of whom were unvaccinated or have an unknown vaccination status.
Experts say outbreaks like these are more likely when vaccination rates drop — and rates have already fallen below the 95% needed for herd immunity.
Exemptions among U.S. kindergartners also rose to an all-time high during the 2024 to 2025 school year, the data showed, increasing to 3.6% from 3.3% the year before.
Exemptions increased in 36 states and Washington, D.C., with 17 states reporting exemptions exceeding 5%, the CDC added.
Speaking on "CBS Mornings" earlier this year about the measles outbreak, Dr. Céline Gounder, CBS News medical contributor and editor-at-large for public health at KFF Health News, expressed worry over exemption increases across the country.
"We're really seeing a lot of exemptions [and] concerns about vaccination that are not warranted," she said, adding, for most people, the MMR vaccine will protect you for life against measles, one of the most contagious infectious diseases. Doctors and public health officials say the vaccine, which has been used for decades, is safe and highly effective.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Yahoo
Teenager and Toddler Contract Parasite Spread by Exposure to Raccoon Feces
The two unrelated children were hospitalized and treated for B. procyonis infectionsNEED TO KNOW Two California children contracted a rare parasite commonly spread by raccoon feces and occasionally by dogs The two unrelated kids — a teenager and a toddler — were hospitalized and treated for B. procyonis infections in 2024 The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says people should "avoid contact with raccoons and their feces"Two children in California contracted a rare parasite that is commonly spread by raccoon feces and occasionally by dogs. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) detailed two 2024 cases of a B. procyonis infection found in two unrelated children — a 14-year-old boy and a 15-month-old boy — in its latest Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, published on Thursday, July 31. The infection, commonly referred to as raccoon roundworm infection, is caused by the Baylisascaris procyonis roundworm, which is often spread by exposure to raccoon feces and can also be transmitted to dogs in rare cases. According to the report, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (LACDPH) was notified last year of two patients with neurological signs and symptoms — such as behavioral change, lethargy and "gait instability" — consistent with the infection. Both cases were in the South Bay area of Los Angeles County, according to a LACDPH release from September 2024. According to the CDC, raccoons can "shed millions of roundworm eggs in their feces every day," which then become infective after a few weeks and can develop into larvae when consumed by "nondefinitive hosts." There have only been 35 cases in humans reported in the U.S., the health organization said. The teenage boy, who is autistic, had a history of ingesting non-food items and was initially hospitalized in May 2024 due to a series of "behavioral changes," according to the new information from the CDC. After "enhancing" lesions were detected in the boy's brain, doctors discovered and treated what the CDC called "a live parasitic nematode" in his eye. The teen was prescribed medication for a six-week period, before symptoms "subsequently resolved" and he returned to his "baseline neurologic status," according to the agency. The second patient, a toddler, was also hospitalized that June, before a brain MRI found "diffuse white matter abnormalities." Months later, doctors eventually discovered a "live parasitic nematode" in his eye — which, like the older boy, was treated with a laser. Both boys were also treated with a drug for paramedic worms, albendazole and the anti-inflammatory corticosteroids. While a source of the infection was not clear for the toddler, the CDC reported that a raccoon latrine — or an area where the animals defecate — was located on the rooftop of the teenager's home, "directly above the entrance to the premises, allowing feces to roll onto the landing below." The child was suspected to have consumed the feces or feces-contaminated soil. Due to the extent that raccoons visit the home, and unsuccessful efforts to move the animal's latrine, the family is planning on moving, the CDC said. "Given the severity of disease in humans, the high prevalence of B. procyonis infection in raccoons, and the proximity of raccoons to humans and pets, B. procyonis is a substantial public health concern," the CDC said. "To prevent infection, the public should avoid contact with raccoons and their feces, not keep raccoons as pets, ensure that children or persons with developmental disabilities do not place contaminated objects or fingers into their mouths, practice good hand hygiene after outdoor activities and safely remove raccoon latrines on properties, paying special attention to flat surfaces such as rooftops, decks, tree stumps, or unsealed attics and other areas where raccoons prefer to defecate," they continued. Since dogs can also be infected, the CDC encourages dog owners to prevent their pets from eating raccoon feces and said pets should be treated with a "year-round parasite prevention product." Read the original article on People
Yahoo
6 hours ago
- Yahoo
Long Island soccer player returns to the field after beating cancer as a teen
A Long Island soccer player had to hang up his cleats after he was diagnosed with cancer, a disease that plagued both his mother and grandfather, but as CBS News New York's Krystle Rich reports, the American Soccer Club defender is back and stronger than ever.
Yahoo
7 hours ago
- Yahoo
Products with opioid-like effects sold at gas stations may be banned as illicit substances
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is recommending banning a compound found in unregulated tablets, gummies and drink mixes sold online and at gas stations and convenience stores, the Trump administration announced this week. The substance, known as 7-OH, will be scheduled as an illicit drug if the Drug Enforcement Administration − a branch of the US Justice Department responsible for classifying drugs as controlled substances − approves the sanction after a review. "Dark innovations in chemistry have exacerbated the addiction crisis in this country," US Department of Health and Human Services Deputy Secretary Jim O'Neil told reporters during a Tuesday, July 29, press conference in Washington DC. "Synthetic opioids like carfentanill and the substance we're here to take action on today: 7-Hydroxymitragynine." O'Neil said 7-hydroxymitragynine, 7-OH, is deliberately addictive and a powerful opioid agonist many times more potent than morphine. Calling it "a recipe for public health disaster," O'Neill, said 7-OH products are often sold without warnings or controls. "We've seen a disturbing rise in reports of overdoses, poisonings and emergency room visits linked to products containing 7-OH,' O'Neil said. "These substances are often sold online or in convenience stores with no quality control, no dosage control and no warnings." 'They've killed thousands and thousands' During the press conference, FDA commissioner Martin Makary spoke alongside US Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., as they announced they planned to send warning letters to companies for illegally marketing products containing 7-OH in an effort to combat the country's opioid addiction problem. 'We have a history in public health of being asleep at the wheel,' Makary said. 'Public health is supposed to prevent disasters, not just clean them up after they've killed thousands and thousands of people.' Which states felt tsunami waves? See list of where it hit after Russia earthquake What is 7-OH? The compound 7-OH is a naturally occurring substance in the kratom plant (Mitragyna speciosa), according to the FDA, but only a minor component comprising less than 2% of the alkaloid content in natural kratom leaves. "However, 7-OH demonstrates substantially greater mu-opioid receptor potency than kratom's primary alkaloid constituent mitragynine, as well as other classical opioids such as morphine," the FDA wrote in its findings. Mu-opioid receptors, found in the brain and spinal cord, are primarily responsible for pain relief and other opioid effects like euphoria and respiratory depression, according to research published on the National Institutes of Health's National Library of Medicine. Contributing: Adrianna Rodriguez Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@ and follow her on X @nataliealund. (This story was updated to include video.) This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: What is 7-OH? Opioid-like product may get banned by FDA Solve the daily Crossword
