In 1975, Wisconsin passed the Student Immunization Law which detailed required doses of vaccinations for children attending all Wisconsin schools, as well as licensed day care centers in order to prevent transmission of these communicable diseases outlined in the table below. Since then, there have been many changes and additions to the statute (Chapter 252) and administrative rule (DHS 144). These updates can be found at Wisconsin Statute 252.04.
*NEW 5/20/24: To bring Wisconsin schools closer in line to the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices nationwide recommendations, and in line with neighboring states' school requirements, new requirements have been implemented.
Here are the updated changes that will be implemented this Fall 2024:
1. Adding Meningococcal (MenACWY-containing) Vaccine to the requirements for
students entering 7th grade, and a booster dose for eligible students entering
12th grade. Please contact your healthcare provider for more guidance.
2. Parent report of the chickenpox disease is no longer an acceptable exemption
from the varicella (chickenpox) requirement. Children must have a diagnosis of
chickenpox from a qualified healthcare provider (M.D., D.O., N.P. or P.A.) to be
exempt from this requirement. However, existing exemptions still apply.
3. Updating the definition of "substantial outbreak" for both child care centers
and schools by revising to align with CDC definitions and to add chickenpox and
meningococcal disease to the definitions.
A summary of the latest immunization requirements for Wisconsin schools can be found here. Waivers to vaccinations are still permitted for medical, religious or personal conviction.
As the District Nurse, and per the Department of Health Services DHS 144.03(10)(a), I am able to obtain your child's immunization information if it is available on the Wisconsin Immunization Registry. For this reason, I ask that you only submit a copy of your child's immunization records if your child is:
- from out of state or out of the country,
- not listed on the the Wisconsin Immunization Registry, or
- you have chosen to opt out on immunizations and will complete a waiver form to submit to the school nurse.
*Waiver forms are available for religious, medical or personal conviction. Keep in mind that in the event of an outbreak of a vaccine preventable disease, students with waivers may be excluded from school until the outbreak subsides.
Student Immunization Record & Waiver Form
Tdap Vaccine
For student's entering the 7th grade, the Wisconsin Student Immunization Law requires the student to receive one dose of the Tdap vaccine. To be compliant with the school law, the parent/guardian must provide their child's school with proof of immunization or claim a waiver.
*Meningococcal Vaccine
New for the 2024-25 School Year. The Wisconsin Student Immunization Law will now require the Meningococcal vaccine for 7th graders (one dose) and 12th graders (two doses). Please note that 12th graders who received their first dose of Meningococcal ACWY containing vaccine at age 16 or older are only required to have one dose. The parent/guardian may claim a waiver for medical, religious or personal reasons.
There are three types of meningococcal vaccines in the United States:
-Meningococcal conjugate or MenACWY vaccines
-Serogroup B meningococcal or Men B vaccines (NOT required by Wisconsin laws)
-Pentavalent or MenABCWY vaccine (contains ACWY and B so does count)
Meningococcal containing Vaccine
For more information, including the clinic schedule please visit the Winnebago County Public Health Department website.
Some additional information on vaccine preventable diseases
Human Papillomavirus
Influenza
The CDC recommends receiving the influenza vaccine annually for everyone 6 months of age and older.
***Influenza Vaccine Fact Sheet (Live, intranasal)
***Influenza Vaccine Fact Sheet (Inactivated or recombinant)
Questions about vaccines?? Check out these websites:
www.vaccineinformation.org or www.cdc.gov/vaccines