The State Board of Health (SBOH) has approved changes to Chapter 246-105 of the Washington Administrative Code (WAC) concerning school and child care immunization policy. These rules apply to all public and private schools and licensed child care centers in Washington State.
The update to Chapter 246-105 WAC has three major focuses:
- It now requires medically verified immunization records for school and child care (ending the common practice of a 30-day grace period at the start of the school year.)
- It clarifies conditional status in regard to school and child care immunization requirements and implementation.
- It changes the Tdap immunization requirement to 7th through 12th grades.
Check out the new website for more details including frequently asked questions: https://www.doh.wa.gov/YouandYourFamily/Immunization/SchoolandChildCare/RuleChanges
NOTE: WCAAP is working with DOH on a short QI learning collaborative to ensure children receive scheduled school required vaccinations before the first day of school for the 2020-2021 school year. The learning collaborative, which will launch in mid-February 2020, will include didactic learning, monthly calls with collaborative clinics, data analysis, and developing education materials for providers. To learn more or to participate in the learning collaborative, please contact Michelle Izumizaki at mizumizaki@wcaap.org.