Connecticut State Department of Public Health

School Immunization Survey Data

Required Immunizations for School and Child Care

Vaccination is a medical intervention with direct benefits to both individuals and communities. When a large percentage of a population is vaccinated, the entire community (vaccinated and unvaccinated) receives additional protection from vaccine preventable diseases. This concept, known as 'herd immunity,' is a primary justification for mandatory vaccination policies in the United States. By following the recommended schedule and fully immunizing children on time, parents protect their children against 14 vaccine preventable diseases. If a high enough percentage of children are vaccinated outbreaks can also be prevented. 

In the U.S., all states require children attending public school or state-licensed day care facilities to receive a series of vaccinations. Vaccination requirements for school and day care attendance are critical to ensuring high rates of vaccination. Linking vaccination with school attendance, which is also required by law, ensures that vaccines reach the greatest number of children. Schools are a prime venue for the transmission of vaccine-preventable disease, and active school-age children can further spread disease to their families and others with whom they interact.1

Specific vaccine requirements for school and child care vary by state. The Connecticut immunization laws and regulations can be found on the Department of Public Health’s Immunization Laws and Regulations web page. Each school and child care program is responsible for ensuring that attendees are in compliance with the vaccine requirements.

Immunization Survey

The school immunization survey measures the extent to which children in Connecticut are protected from vaccine-preventable diseases. Each year the Department of Public Health distributes an immunization survey to all Connecticut schools and licensed group day care homes and child care centers. On the survey, the total number of attendees who completed the required vaccine series, the number who failed to complete the required vaccine series, and the number of children with a religious or medical exemption are reported. This information is reported for all child care attendees on the child care survey and for all kindergarten and seventh grade students on the school survey. In addition, influenza vaccine receipt is surveyed for all preschool2 attendees. Individual vaccine information on each child is not collected; only total numbers are collected from each school and child care facility.

Typically survey results for the current school year will not be available until the summer or fall of the next school year.

Statewide Data Summary of Religious and Medical Exemptions, 1999–2019

Highlights for 2018-2019

On October 3, 2019, DPH finalized the 2018-2019 school immunization data after reaching out to schools with lower than expected immunization rates and receiving updated numbers in September from some of those schools. The final statewide measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) rate for kindergartners is 96.1%, a small increase from the rate of 95.9% reported by DPH on August 29, 2019. The statewide MMR rate of 96.1% is a drop of 0.4 percentage points from the previous year and 1.0 percentage points since 2012-2013.  For public schools the average MMR rate is 96.4% and for private schools the average is 92.4%. Of the schools with more than 30 kindergarten students, 134 schools have MMR rates below 95% and 41 schools have MMR rates below 90%.

The percentage of kindergarten students with a religious exemption remained unchanged in the final dataset, increasing by 25% compared with the previous year, from 2.0% to 2.5%. The percentage of kindergarten students with a religious exemption has increased 1.1% since 2012-2013. The percentage of kindergarten students with a medical exemption remains fairly constant, at 0.2% in 2018-2019, compared with 0.3% during previous years. 

Percentage of Vaccinated Kindergartners, Connecticut, 2012 – 2019

 

Kindergarten Exemptions, Connecticut, 2012–2019

Statewide Summary Statistics includes summary immunization information for kindergarten, seventh grade, and influenza vaccine for preschool.

County Summary Statistics includes county summary immunization information for kindergarten, seventh grade, and influenza vaccine for preschool.

School Immunization Data includes immunization information data for each reporting school. You can look up your individual school to see immunization rates, exemption rates, and other related information. 

Please note the data limitations listed in bulleted format on page one of each of the following documents. 

1 http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/imz-managers/guides-pubs/downloads/vacc_mandates_chptr13.pdf

2 Includes preschool programs run by local boards of education; preschool programs located in child care centers are counted on the child care survey.



 

 

 


For more information or to contact the Immunization Program, please call:
860-509-7929, during normal business hours, Monday-Friday 8:30am to 4:30pm


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