Routine childhood vaccinations fell nationwide amid the pandemic and are below target levels, the CDC reported April 22.
In the 2020-21 school year, about 94 percent of kindergartners had received all state-required vaccines for preventable diseases such as measles and chickenpox. This figure is about 1 percentage point lower than the year prior and falls just below the CDC's 95 percent vaccination rate target.
"This means there are 35,000 more children in the United States during this time period without documentation of complete vaccination against common diseases," Georgina Peacock, MD, acting director of the CDC's immunization services division, said during an April 21 media briefing cited by The New York Times. "This is further evidence of how pandemic-related disruptions to education and healthcare could have lingering consequences for children."
Health officials have expressed concern that preventable childhood diseases could become more common if the nation doesn't increase vaccination rates.
View the CDC's full report here.