The Pennsylvania departments of Education, Health, Human Services, and Insurance are reminding families to ensure their children’s immunizations are up to date as part of back-to-school preparations. Immunization requirements also extend to students of cyber and charter schools.

Immunizations are a necessary precaution needed to protect infants, children, and teens from serious childhood diseases such as measles, mumps and chickenpox. Staying up to date with immunizations provides the best protection against disease and is essential to individual and population health.

Under the Affordable Care Act, most insurance plans, including those bought through the federal Marketplace, as well as the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) and Medicaid, are required to cover school vaccinations as a free preventive service without charging a copayment or coinsurance.

“As students head back to school this year, parents no doubt have many decisions and concerns to consider during this difficult time,” said Insurance Commissioner Jessica Altman. “Thankfully, the cost of school vaccinations isn’t one of them, as most insurance plans cover required immunizations with no cost to the consumer.”

These immunizations are covered regardless of whether or not the yearly deductible has been met. However, it is important to make sure that the doctor or provider who administers the immunization is within your health insurance plan’s network, or you may be responsible for the cost.

Immunization-preventable diseases can be very dangerous, may require hospitalization, and can even result in death. A discussion with your doctor or your child’s doctor can help determine which vaccines are needed.

“Immunizations are a safe and effective way to protect yourself and your children from a number of serious, life-threatening diseases,” Acting Secretary of Health Alison Beam said. “Getting your immunizations can help protect those around you, including people with compromised immune systems who cannot get inoculated. It is essential that everyone, especially children, are up-to-date on all recommended immunizations before heading back to school or within that first week.”

In recent years, a change in state regulations altered the provisional period in which students could attend school without their vaccinations from eight months to five days. Children in grades K-12 need the following immunizations for attendance: tetanus, diphtheria, polio, MMR (measles, mumps, rubella), hepatitis B, and chickenpox. Children entering the seventh grade also need additional immunizations of meningococcal conjugate vaccine (MCV) and tetanus, diphtheria, acellular pertussis (Tdap). If a child does not have at least one dose of the above immunizations, he or she risks exclusion from school. Additionally, while the COVID-19 vaccine is not mandatory to attend school, the Wolf Administration encourages Pennsylvanians age 12 and older to get the COVID-19 vaccine to ensure their safety during the 2021-2022 school year.

Health coverage is available for all children in Pennsylvania. No family makes too much money to purchase coverage through CHIP, and families or children may qualify for coverage through Medical Assistance. Immunizations and well-child visits necessary to help kids stay healthy are covered through both of these programs. If families have lost coverage due to a change in income or employment, CHIP and Medicaid can ensure parents can access affordable health coverage and care for their children.

“Medical Assistance and CHIP exist so that families and children don’t have to go without health care coverage. This is always important, but especially during a pandemic,” DHS Acting Secretary Meg Snead said. “DHS administers these safety-net programs so that people are able to meet essential needs during difficult times. That support will continue to be here to help Pennsylvanians as we work to recover from this public health crisis and period of economic insecurity.”

More information on CHIP can be found at www.chipcoverspakids.com. Families can apply for coverage through the CHIP program and determine their eligibility for Medical Assistance and other assistance programs that can help families online at www.compass.state.pa.us.  

“Students and educators are preparing for the beginning of a new school year and opportunities to teach, learn, and grow together in classrooms across the commonwealth,” said Secretary Dr. Noe Ortega. “As part of back to school preparations, I encourage families to ensure their children’s immunizations are up to date.”

Anyone looking to visit a local immunization clinic to receive vaccinations should call 1-877-PA-HEALTH (1-877-724-3258) to schedule an appointment. Pennsylvanians should have their vaccination records available when they call to make an appointment. A parent or legal guardian must accompany a child receiving immunizations.

August is National Immunization Awareness Month (NAIM), an observance coordinated annually to help highlight the importance of vaccination for people of all ages.

Additional information on immunizations can be found on the Pennsylvania Department of Health’s website at health.pa.gov.

August 24, 2021, Dr. Kerry W. Helm, Chief of the PDE Division of Certification Services Bureau of School Leadership and Teacher Quality issued a PennLink to Local Education Agency (LEA) and Intermediate Unit (IU) Hiring Managers titled Recording and Slides Available: PDE Virtual Town Hall for New PK-12 School Social Worker Certification.

The memo states that on August 12, 2021 PDE held a Virtual Town Hall to inform the field about PDE’s newest certification, School Social Worker, Educational Specialist Certificate PK-12.

PDE has posted the recording and slides on its Information and Updates page and memo recipients were asked to share those materials with their networks.

In addition, PDE welcomes additional questions or comments at its dedicated certification resource account at [email protected].

The Pennsylvania departments of Education (PDE) and Health (PDH) are welcoming students across the commonwealth back to school, reminding parents to ensure their children’s immunizations are up to date and reminding schools about newly available public health safety initiatives.

“It is essential that everyone, especially children, are up-to-date on all recommended immunizations,” Acting Physician General Dr. Denise Johnson said. “Immunizations are a safe and effective way to protect yourself and your children from a number of serious, life-threatening diseases. Getting your immunizations can help protect those around you, including people with compromised immune systems who cannot get vaccinated. If you have a child aged 12 or older, make sure they get a COVID-19 vaccine before heading back to school.”

Immunizations are a necessary precaution needed to protect infants, children and teens from serious childhood diseases such as measles, mumps and chickenpox. Staying up to date with immunizations provides the best protection against disease and is essential to individual and population health. Vaccine-preventable diseases can be very dangerous, may require hospitalization, and can even result in death. A discussion with your doctor or your child’s doctor can help determine which immunizations are needed.

Parents and guardians should schedule immunization appointments as early as possible. In recent years, a change in state regulations altered the provisional period in which students could attend school without their vaccinations from eight months to five days. Children in grades K-12 need the following immunizations for attendance: tetanus, diphtheria, polio, MMR (measles, mumps, rubella), hepatitis B, and chickenpox. Immunization requirements also extend to students of cyber and charter schools.

Children entering the seventh grade also need additional immunizations of meningococcal conjugate vaccine (MCV) and tetanus, diphtheria, acellular pertussis (Tdap). If a child does not have at least one dose of the above immunizations, he or she risks exclusion from school.

In addition, PDH and PDE continue to advise K-12 school entities to follow current Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidance, to the greatest extent possible, when creating and implementing mitigation policies and practices. A summary of the CDC’s school guidance is available on PDE’s website.

“Students and educators are excited to return to classrooms and begin the new school year together. We’re excited for them and looking forward to a new academic year filled with opportunity, innovation, and growth,” said Secretary of Education Dr. Noe Ortega. “It’s vital for our schools to continue to keep the health, safety and well-being of their communities at the forefront. PDE joins the Pennsylvania Department of Health in continuing to recommend school communities follow current CDC guidance.”  

Schools should also take advantage of the newly available public health safety initiatives. Last week, PDE and PDH announced two important initiatives to support K-12 schools during the 2021-22 school year. Schools outside of Philadelphia County can now sign up to receive free, weekly COVID-19 testing to identify and prevent the spread of COVID-19. Additionally, schools can now request COVID-19 vaccine providers to coordinate a vaccine clinic for the employees, contractors, volunteers, students, or students’ families of the school to add a layer of protection against COVID-19.

Acting Physician General Johnson and Education Secretary Ortega’s visit occurred on the first day of school for Mt. Lebanon School District. Universal masking is required for all individuals, regardless of vaccination status, while indoors in the district.

“We know that in-person instruction is the strongest and most beneficial learning model for the large majority of our students. The district’s goal for the 2021-22 school year is to maximize in-person learning and minimize any disruptions caused by COVID outbreaks and community spread,” said Dr. Timothy J. Steinhauer, superintendent of the Mt. Lebanon School District. “We all share the responsibility to practice and model behaviors that have been shown to limit the spread of COVID-19 and encourage general health and wellness. We encourage families to remind students of the best practices in regard to hand washing, managing coughs and sneezes, monitoring personal health and staying home if not feeling well.”

PDE continues to support Local Education Agencies (LEAs) as they prepare for and navigate the upcoming school year. This includes through the latest chapter of PDE’s growing Roadmap for Education Leaders; Accelerated Learning through an Integrated System of Support. This toolkit includes information and resources to help address students’ learning loss and other issues caused by the pandemic.

Anyone looking to visit a local immunization clinic to receive vaccinations should call 1-877-PA-HEALTH (1-877-724-3258) to schedule an appointment. Pennsylvanians should have their vaccination records available when they call to make an appointment. A parent or legal guardian must accompany a child receiving immunizations.

To view photos and video from today’s event, please visit PACast.

On August 24, 2021, Patricia Allen, Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), released a PennLink stating that Pennsylvania Act 84 of 2015 requires that public and nonpublic schools receive electronic notice with general information about CHIP on an annual basis no later than August 15. It also states that the CHIP flyer was created and should be shared with every parent or guardian of every student enrolled in the local education agency (LEA) during the 2021-22 school year.

LEAs are advised to forward the CHIP flyer to each school under its jurisdiction at the beginning of the 2021-22 school year. The flyer can be sent directly through email, posted to a school website with a link distributed to students’ families, printed and distributed with other information that is being sent as caregiver packets, or prepared for students to take home.

By distributing the flyer at the beginning of the school year, LEAs help ensure that all students, including those new to the LEA and incoming kindergarten classes, receive the information about the program as soon as possible if they are in need.

The flyer can be accessed on the PAPSA website by clicking here.

The flyer and many more resources can also be found on the CHIP website at www.CHIPcoversPAkids.com or at https://www.dhs.pa.gov/CHIP/Pages/CHIP.aspx.