DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Officials fear hundreds of Iowa students will be barred from classes on the first day of school because the students lack the newly required meningitis vaccination.
The Des Moines Register reports that districts have been notifying families for months, and some even set up vaccination clinics to meet rules passed by lawmakers in 2016.
Polk County health officials say nearly 1,000 students still lacked the vaccination as of Monday afternoon.
The rules say students entering seventh grade and born after Sept. 15, 2004, will need proof of one vaccination. Students entering 12th grade and born after Sept. 15, 1999, will need proof of two doses of the vaccine, or one dose if the shot came after the student turned 16.
Exemptions can be made for medical or religious reasons.
