VERSAILLES, Ky. (LEX 18) — There’s concern inside the Woodford County Health Department. School begins in the county in 10 days, vaccination rates are dropping, and Pertussis (Whooping Cough) is spreading.
“(The kids are) off schedule, or they may not be getting vaccinated. And I am worried because they will be less protected, which makes everyone in the building less protected,” Cassie Prather, the county’s Public Health Director, said.
Mrs. Prather showed LEX 18 some numbers centered around vaccination rates, and currently, Kentucky kindergarteners are running about 6% lower than the national average on their scheduled Measles, Mumps, Rubella vaccination. We’re also about 3% lower than we were as a state two years ago. Rates are also dipping for the Pertussis shot.
“Even though we're still up in the mid-80s for Woodford’s incoming kindergarteners and their vaccine percentages, that's not going to bode well for the rest of the year,” Prather stated.
It’s a problem Prather has seen since a slight measles outbreak occurred. She heard from parents who didn’t like the post-shot effects on their children. But, she said, those are normal reactions. That’s how the body works to build up immunity to those diseases for which they were vaccinated.
“This is a good sign that your body is mounting an appropriate immune response,” Prather stressed.
Lexington pediatrician, Dr. Beth Hawse, said it does not take a large percentage of unvaccinated children to wreck community immunity. It’s why Prather is concerned when any child, without a legitimate reason, comes to school unprotected or even underprotected.
“The people who can and should get a vaccine are not, then it leaves all of us potentially at risk. The whole point of getting the majority of the herd vaccinated is to protect the entire herd,” she added.
In some cases, Whooping Cough can lead to death, Prather noted.
“If someone is immune compromised. That’s the point in the herd immunity; that we can all wrap our arms around those who can’t be fully protected,” she said.
Last year, Kentucky’s Cabinet for Health and Family Services reported 543 cases of Pertussis.
