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Recommendations for School/Childcare Staff

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New Utah School/Childcare Employee Immunization Recommendations

The Utah Immunization Program endorses immunization recommendations for staff in school and childcare programs. Click here to download recommendations.

Tdap Requirements

Effective July 1, 2011, students entering 7th grade in the 2011-2012 school year must have a single dose of Tdap, regardless of interval since the last tetanus/diphtheria-containing vaccine. The Tdap vaccine must be given after 7 years of age.

Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine Requirements

Effective March 12, 2010, one supplemental dose of Prevnar 13 vaccine is required for healthy children 14-59 months of age who have completed the 4-dose series with Prevnar 7 AND for children with underlying medical conditions through 71 months of age.

The following information is provided as clarification of this requirement.

The number of vaccine doses for the pneumococcal conjugate series has not changed. Rather, an improved formulation of the pneumococcal conjugate vaccine, Prevnar, has been licensed to protect against more types of the disease. In order to receive protection against these additional types, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommended that young children who were fully vaccinated with Prevnar 7 vaccine receive an additional dose of the new Prevnar 13 vaccine.

While the Utah Department of Health (UDOH) policy does indicate that the supplemental dose of Prevnar 13 vaccine is “required,” the UDOH does not encourage early childcare programs to exclude
children who have previously completed the 4-dose series with Prevnar 7 vaccine from early childcare programs if they have not received an additional dose of Prevnar 13 vaccine. The UDOH encourages early childcare programs to refer parents of these children to their health care providers to get their children the additional dose at their next scheduled visit or prior to November 30, 2010.

However, children who have NOT completed the pneumococcal conjugate vaccine series should complete the series with the Prevnar 13 vaccine. Records of these children should be monitored routinely to track when the next vaccine dose is due.

Reference:
Licensure of a 13-Valent Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine (PCV13) and Recommendations for Use Among Children -- Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), 2010

Revisions to the Fourth Dose of Polio Vaccine

Effective March 2010, the final dose of polio vaccine administered ON or AFTER August 7, 2009 must be given at a minimum age of 4 years AND a minimum interval of 6 months following the previous dose. The final dose of polio administered PRIOR to August 7, 2009 will fall under the previous recommendation with a minimum interval of 4 weeks between doses.