Kaʻū News Briefs Jan. 9, 2025

University of Hawai'i nursing school helps with youth vaccinations, which are required for attending school starting in seventh grade. DOH reports vaccination rates have fallen. Photo from U.H.

    

STUDENT VACCINATIONS ARE FALLING and it's "a concerning development," says a statement released Thursday by the state Department of Health. Hawaii State Law requires students to meet immunization requirements before attending school. Exemptions from the immunization requirements may be allowed for medical or religious reasons, if the appropriate documentation is presented to the school. No other exemptions are allowed by the State.

    Ka'u High & Pahala Elementary were reported as having 46.09 percent, one of the highest numbers of students in the state not completing immunizations. The report for Na'alehu Elementary shows 25 percent. Volcano School of the Arts & Sciences did not report. Kanu O Ka'aina Public Charter School reported 4.5 percent of students not up to date with immunizations.

    Statewide, 39,583 or 21% of students from public, charter and private schools were not up to date on their school-required immunizations for the 2023-24 school year. That is a 25% increase from the 2022-23 school year. This number includes those claiming exemptions, those without immunization records, or students missing individually required vaccines.
    Department of Health reports that majority of this increase in missing school-required immunizations is from 7th grade school requirements that were implemented in 2020 during COVID. For the 2023-2024 school year, 16% of kindergarteners were not up to date with school-required vaccinations compared to 55% of seventh graders.
Of the 382 schools reporting for the 2023-24 year, 282 schools (74%) reported more than 5% of their student populations were not up to date with Hawaiʻi's school immunization requirements. "Unfortunately, 36 schools (almost 10%) reported having more than 50% of their student body not up to date," said the Department of Health statement.
    For Hawaiʻi public schools, the Hawaiʻi Department of Education reported that 36,026 students were missing one or more required immunizations for the 2023-24 school year.

Preliminary data for the 2024-25 school year shows 28,300 students missing one or more vaccinations, the DOE said. Schools have until Jan. 10, 2025, to report to DOH on the number of students not up-to-date on immunizations.

    "An increase in the number of students without up-to-date immunizations is a cause for concern," said Dr. Kenneth Fink, DOH director. "High vaccination rates help protect those who are unable to receive certain vaccines due to medical reasons and those with a non-medical exemption through what's called herd immunity. Low vaccination rates mean unvaccinated keiki are at increased risk of infection, especially at schools with a high rate of the student population not being up to date. We are already seeing increased cases of pertussis and are at risk for a measles outbreak. Immunizations are necessary to protect infants, children and adults from potentially serious and contagious diseases."
    Hawaiʻi has two forms of vaccination exemptions for schools, medical and religious. DOH data indicates a religious exemption rate of 4.1% for the 2023-24 school year when averaged across the entire state. This is an upward trend compared to prior years starting in 2019-20 at 2.1%. Medical exemptions have increased from 0.07% in 2019-20 to 0.16% in 2023-24 but continue to remain low overall.

    The federal Center for Disease Control confirmed a similar upward trend in Hawaiʻi's religious exemption rate over the last few years through a separate analysis. (Vaccination Coverage and Exemptions among Kindergartners | SchoolVaxView | CDC).

    Nationwide, including Hawaiʻi, there has been an increase in vaccine hesitancy since the COVID-19 pandemic. "The volume of misinformation about vaccines continues to grow and has contributed to this trend. Also, a continuing challenge with missing vaccinations is difficulty in accessing healthcare, particularly in rural areas," according to the Department of Health statement.
    The agency announced that it is "working closely with educational partners and healthcare providers to address ongoing challenges that may be contributing to this trend. This work includes educating families that vaccination is the best defense against certain life-threatening diseases; working with pharmacies and physician practices to increase access; and making it easier to collect, analyze and report accurate data on student immunizations by modernizing the Hawaiʻi Immunization Registry."
    To view the immunization data by school, click here.

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GOV. JOSH GREEN IS ON A CAMPAIGN TO PROTECT VACCINATIONS and headed to Washington D.C. this week to lobby against Robert Kennedy, Jr. becoming U.S. Secretary of the Department of Health & Human Services. RFK Jr. was appointed by President-elect Donald Trump for the position but requires the U.S. Senate to confirm him.

     Green was interviewed for CNN and other media. He said, "If Mr. Kennedy is confirmed as secretary of Health and Human Services, there is a real danger that he will continue to spread misinformation about vaccines, potentially causing vaccination rates to fall and leading to preventable deaths. We can't allow that to happen."
    On Tuesday, the Hawai'i Governor published a guest essay in the New York Times detailing his firsthand experience during the 2019 measles outbreak in Samoa, where he witnessed the deadly consequences of vaccine misinformation and blamed it on RFK Jr. and others.
    Green spoke with the Washington Post about his concerns over Kennedy's nomination. The Governor also said, "Mr. Kennedy's claim that, 'There's no vaccine that is safe and effective' is not only false, but reckless, irresponsible, and dangerous. "This kind of misinformation undermines public confidence in vaccines, and puts lives at risk."

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TWO CLASSICAL AND BROADWAY PUBLIC MUSIC CONCERTS, with voice, piano and violin, this Saturday, Jan. 11, will offer unique programs at their Ocean View and Pāhala venues.

     The concert at Ocean View Community Center at 12:30 p.m. will feature Stars of Broadway, Opera and Ballet - including Carlton Moe from Broadway's Phantom of the Opera, Metropolitan Opera Soprano Amy Shoremount-Obra, Virtuoso Violinist Eric Silberger together with renowned Hawai'i-based pianists Maika'i Nash and Monica Chung and Ocean View's very own Farley Sangles on trumpet. 

     The 7 p.m. evening concert at Pāhala Plantation House will include the musical stars above and also serve as the grand conclusion of  this week's García school series - a workshop created for singers to hone their craft- presenting singers from all over the world such as New York, China, and London in addition to several local musicians. 

    These artists will perform a wide range of repertoire, celebrating the depth and breadth of vocal performance. "Both concerts promise unique experiences, so don't miss the chance to enjoy them!" said Shoremount Obra co-founder of the music school held annually in Pāhala. Some of music to be featured are Mozart, Saint-Saëns, Schubert, and favorites from Broadway.