Health Officials Want Mandatory Whooping Cough Vaccinations
LOS ANGELES (AP) — California health officials want parents of teens to get up to date on their whooping cough vaccine to get into compliance with a new law for 2011.
A new law requires all middle and high school students to be vaccinated against the highly infectious disease also known as pertussis prior to the 2011 school year this fall.
State immunization chief Dr. Eileen Yamada says students in public and private schools will need to show proof of a TDAP booster shot before starting school.
Immunity begins to wane 10 years after a pertussis vaccine is given, and most students were last immunized before entering kindergarten, between ages 4 and 6.
More than 7,800 cases of whooping cough were reported here in 2010, including 10 deaths.
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