Texas kids' flu vaccination rates are lagging
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Texas kids' flu vaccination rates are lagging compared to last year, even amid what's shaping up to be a historically nasty influenza season tied to the so-called super flu.
Why it matters: Childhood flu vaccination has been trending downward for the past several seasons.
By the numbers: Uptake among kids aged 6 months to 17 years is down 6.5 percentage points in Texas as of Jan. 3 when compared to the same time the previous year, per the CDC's latest data.
- Meanwhile, Oklahoma's childhood flu vaccination rate is up a whopping 31 percentage points over last year.
Zoom out: Nationally, vaccination rates for kids are down 1.5 percentage points.
State of play: After a sharp rise in cases at the end of December, influenza cases have decreased across Texas and in Bexar County, per state and county dashboards.
Between the lines: The Trump administration recently changed its flu shot recommendations for kids, part of an overhaul of the childhood vaccination schedule.
- Instead of recommending the flu shot for all kids, it's now advising parents to chat with their doctors first.
Many medical experts slammed the changes, which come amid broader vaccine skepticism among the political right and some close to President Trump — most notably Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
- "Changes of this magnitude require careful review, expert and public input, and clear scientific justification," said Sandra Adamson Fryhofer, a trustee of the American Medical Association. "That level of rigor and transparency was not part of this decision."