[ad_1]
KANSAS CITY, KS (AP) – The national measles outbreak has not yet touched Kansas, but cases have been reported in neighboring provinces of Oklahoma, Missouri and Colorado.
Kansas health officials say a case in Kansas seems almost inevitable, as more than 1,000 cases of measles have been reported so far across the country. Kansas is part of a minority of states without a case.
KCUR-FM reports that the state-run annual survey of preschool age vaccination rates suggests that some counties are more successful than others in ensuring that children can save their lives. Although Kansas needs measles, whooping cough and polio vaccines to go to school, 15% of children in kindergarten last year did not know about it.
While measles is in the headlines, other vaccine-preventable diseases, such as pneumonia and cancer, rarely trigger the same alarms.
People can reduce their risk with two recommended bacterial pneumonia vaccines for adults 65 years and older. Bacterial pneumonia hospitalises hundreds of thousands of Americans each year and kills tens of thousands.
The researchers estimate that inoculation against the HPV virus, which causes cancer, would erase each year 80% of the tens of thousands of cancer cases it causes in the country. Most people get HPV at some point in their lives, although most people naturally get rid of their body without necessarily knowing it.
The federal government estimates that only half of Kansas's teens receive even the first dose of HPV vaccine at two or three doses. The same low rates apply to older people in the state and to the recommended vaccinations against pneumonia.
Uninsured or low-quality children, as well as those under Medicaid, benefit from free vaccines against 16 diseases, including HPV and measles.
"Our struggle at the present time really is to know what is the actual vaccination rate in any county," said Phil Griffin, head of immunization programs at the Ministry of Health and Health. Environment of the State of Kansas.
Kansas calculates the rates for kindergarten children each year with the help of a good sample of schools providing more accurate data than some published by the Centers for Disease Control. CDC rate calculations cover a larger number of strokes and age groups.
However, state health authorities will gradually gain a better picture of vaccination rates in the state in the coming years, after lawmakers tightened the rules for electronic vaccine registries from next year.
This will fill some of the gaps in health care providers who often do not know what vaccines a new patient has yet to receive. Physicians and pharmacists will gain more consistent access to vaccines administered in Kansas.
In Kansas, starting this fall, it is planned to put in place two other vaccines (against hepatitis A and meningococcus ACWY) for school attendance. Inoculation rates for both types would likely increase, although hepatitis A rates are already quite high as they are already required for child care in Kansas.
The state has recently hired an epidemiologist to badyze vaccination rates across the state. It looks for grants to support its efforts and collaborates with individual health providers to improve their practices.
Legislators have also recently expanded access to vaccines by allowing pharmacists to donate more vaccines. This can be particularly beneficial for adolescents who do not consult their pediatrician as often and who still lack vaccines.
Source link
