MADISON — As parents and caregivers start back-to-school prep, the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) has released school vaccination data for the 2024-2025 school year, which show 86.4% of students met the minimum immunization requirements, a decrease from the previous school year. 

Unfamiliarity with a new meningitis vaccination requirement for students in grades 7 to 12 is behind the decrease, it may take some time to increase awareness of the requirement to get all students up to date. 

When looking at all students’ vaccination data without the new meningococcal requirement, 89.3% of students met the minimum vaccination requirements, a 0.1% increase from the previous school year.

Wisconsin’s data comes at the same time the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) released a national report that shows Wisconsin kindergartners continue to lag behind other states when it comes to being protected against vaccine-preventable illnesses.

“Our school vaccination data tells us there are children in our schools who are not protected from an outbreak of preventable diseases like measles,” said State Health Officer Paula Tran. “In public health, we know that 95% of people in a community need to be vaccinated against measles in order to prevent an outbreak, which is why it’s so important to get children the vaccines they need on time.”

DHS monitors vaccination rates across the state, including from public and private schools, in order to identify areas of the state where children may be at higher risk of illness or disease. Data at county, district, and school level are shared with schools and local health departments ahead of each school year to help them take action in their local communities.

Cases of vaccine-preventable illnesses such as whooping cough surged in Wisconsin classrooms last year, with nearly 3,000 cases reported to DHS. Other vaccine-preventable diseases continue to increase nationwide, with the number of measles cases in the U.S. the highest it has been in over 30 years due to large outbreaks in other states. Measles in one of the most contagious diseases, and one out of every four people who get measles in the United States will be hospitalized.

“Vaccination is the first line of defense for your child’s health. Each vaccine is approved only after being proven safe and effective,” said Stephanie Schauer, director of the Wisconsin Immunization Program. “Taking time now to ensure your children have received the recommended vaccines will make them less likely to get seriously ill, meaning less time out of school and away from work. And routine vaccines don’t just protect your child — they help keep classrooms and the whole community safe.”

Parents and caregivers can check the Wisconsin Immunization Registry or contact their health care provider or local health department to see if their child is up to date on vaccines. Children who are uninsured or underinsured may be eligible for free or low-cost vaccines through the Vaccines for Children program. Find more information about vaccines on the DHS Vaccine Facts webpage.