On March 5, 2009, the Executive Commissioner on Health & Human Services approved several revisions to the “Immunization Requirements for Children and Students in Texas Public and Private Schools” [Title 25. Health Services, Chapter 97, Texas Administrative Code (TAC) §97.61 and §§97.63-97.77].
The changes to the requirements were made in order to update the Texas elementary and secondary school immunization requirements so that they adhere more closely to the recommendations of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP). These changes include:
Hepatitis A Vaccine: Beginning August 1, 2009, all students entering kindergarten, statewide, will be required to have 2 doses of Hepatitis A vaccine.
Measles, Mumps, Rubella (MMR) Vaccine: Beginning August 1, 2009, all students entering kindergarten will be required to have two doses of measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine.
Varicella Vaccine: Beginning August, 1, 2009, all students entering kindergarten and 7th grade will be required to have 2 doses of varicella vaccine. A written statement from parent (or legal guardian or managing conservator), school nurse, or physician attesting to a child’s positive history of varicella disease (chickenpox), or of varicella immunity, is acceptable in lieu of either dose of varicella vaccine.
Tetanus, Diphtheria and acellular pertussis-containing vaccine (Tdap): Beginning August 1, 2009, all students entering the seventh grade will be required to have one dose of Tdap vaccine. Students in the seventh grade will be required to have a booster dose of Tdap only if it has been five years since their last dose of a tetanus – containing vaccine. Students in grades 8-12 are required to have a booster dose of Tdap if it has been ten years since their previous dose of a tetanus-containing vaccine. Td is acceptable in lieu of Tdap if a contraindication to pertussis exists.
Meningococcal Vaccine: Beginning August 1, 2009, all students entering 7th grade will be required to have one dose of meningococcal vaccine.