Keeping Colorado’s Kids Healthy
from School Health Reporter, Winter 2004
Colorado law requires that all children have their immunizations before they can be admitted into public schools. But what is the state doing to ensure that children younger than school age get the vaccinations they need? Apparently not enough. A recent survey released from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ranked Colorado the worst in the nation when it comes to vaccinating our toddlers on time. Nationally, approximately 75 percent of all toddlers are being vaccinated in accordance with federal immunization guidelines. Colorado is only vaccinating 63 percent of our toddlers (compared to Massachusetts , which had the highest vaccination rate in the nation at 86 percent).
As school health professionals, you are undoubtedly aware of the many reasons to immunize children – prevention from infection and diseases, especially for infants and young children, can protect our children from sickness, severe conditions, and even death. Just look at the recent flu outbreak in Colorado – thousands of children fell ill, schools shut down, and some children even died – all from what is commonly considered a very preventable illness.
So why are Colorado ’s kids so far behind on receiving immunizations? Vaccine shortages in recent years certainly have not helped the situation, but health professionals and public officials cite a number of other reasons as well. First, affordability of the necessary shots is an issue. While Medicaid and the Child Health Plan Plus (CHP+) currently cover the cost of immunizations for enrolled children, there are still many low income families not eligible for these programs who can’t afford the series of 16 to 20 immunization shots that federal and state guidelines recommend for young children. Access to immunizations is another issue. The low reimbursements Medicaid provides to pediatricians for immunizations discourages many pediatricians from vaccinating young children on Medicaid because pediatricians lose money on every single shot – this shifts the burden of immunizing these children to public health clinics. Additionally, many families are unaware of how or where to access immunizations for their children. Reaching immigrants and non-English speaking families with immunization messages also poses a particular challenge. Finally, the percentage of parents indicating a personal medical, religious, or philosophical opposition to vaccinations has doubled over the past ten years.
Clearly, getting the word out about the importance of immunizing Colorado ’s children is not without its challenges. In an effort to overcome many of these barriers and educate the public about the need for immunizations, The Children’s Hospital and the Colorado Children’s Immunization Coalition have joined efforts with a number of other organizations and public officials to raise public awareness. The group has planned a three tiered approach: a media campaign to raise public awareness about the importance of immunizations, a plan to encourage private funding for immunizations and efforts to increase public funding for immunizations. Public service announcements and media events are currently under way, and such public officials as Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper already have lent their support to the media efforts
The Children’s Hospital looks forward to working with public and private entities to support efforts to immunize Colorado ’s young children. As grown-ups, it is our responsibility to advocate for public policy efforts that promote healthy outcomes for our children. With the state legislative session gearing up in January and Congress reconvening, we anticipate there will be many legislative issues concerning kids’ health, safety and well-being that will be considered by elected officials. If you are interested in learning more about The Children’s Hospital’s advocacy efforts, please visit Speak Up for Kids!
