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For Immediate Release
May 20, 2024
Contact: Elizabeth Goodsitt/Jennifer Miller 608-266-1683
DHS to Implement Immunization Updates for Children in Child Care Centers and Schools to Follow State Law
Updates follow federal recommendations to protect children and communities against vaccine-preventable diseases
Today, the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) announces updates to immunizations needed for children in child care centers and schools. The changes include a requirement for meningitis vaccination and that chickenpox infection must be documented by a qualified medical professional. There is no change to existing exemption options for medical, religious, or philosophical reasons.
These changes, which were initially effective for Wisconsin schools and child care centers on February 1, 2023, align with long-standing childhood vaccine recommendations made by the CDC Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), an advisory committee of health experts who develop national recommendations regarding vaccination safety and schedules. Implementation of Wisconsin’s updated school and child care immunization requirements was paused on March 9, 2023, when some of the requirements were suspended by Joint Committee for Review of Administrative Rules. That suspension expired at the end of the legislative session on April 15, 2024, making these school and child care immunization requirements now fully in effect.
View the entire news release.
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