National Immunization Awareness Month is here

August marks the last full month of summer and the last few weeks students and teachers are off from school. August is also National Immunization Awareness Month (NIAM), an important month when it comes to the upcoming back-to-school season. The purpose of NIAM is to highlight how crucial routine vaccinations are for people of all ages though, not just school-aged children.

Image courtesy of CDC

According to the CDC, vaccines are the best way to protect you and your loved ones from preventable disease. Vaccines have saved lives for over 100 years, lowering the rates of diseases that in the past have harmed or killed people. Despite the work that vaccines have done to curb disease, there is still a threat. Vaccination protection can fade over time, leaving you and others vulnerable to serious illness. This is why it’s important to receive your boosters and stay up to date on your vaccines, regardless of age.

Here at the State Library, we wanted to put a spotlight on some important resources you can use when it comes to thinking about vaccinations. First, you may want to access your own vaccination record. The Department of Public Health has created a helpful website to do just that. The Commonwealth may have a record of the vaccines you’ve received, including vaccinations for influenza, tetanus, and many others. The Massachusetts Immunization Information System (MIIS) is also where you can access your digital COVID-19 vaccination card. Just visit https://myvaxrecords.mass.gov/. The Division of Epidemiology and Immunization created this handy guide, which you can access on our digital repository in several languages, to break down the process for you.

If you do have school-aged children, don’t forget to pay attention to vaccination requirements and give yourself plenty of time to get your child vaccinated before back-to-school season. Be sure to take a look at the Immunization Requirements for School Entry. These are requirements created by the Department of Public Health and are laid out in the Code of Massachusetts Regulations (105 CMR 220.000), which you can view in the library or online via the Trial Court Law Libraries website. 

Parents and guardians can read more about childhood vaccines on the CDC’s website. The CDC breaks down vaccinations by age range (including during pregnancy) and provides information on why you should vaccinate your child. Colleges and universities require vaccination as well, so be sure to pay attention to these requirements. These requirements apply to all full-time undergraduate and graduate students under 30 years of age and all full-time and part-time health science students. Meningococcal requirements apply to all full-time students 21 years of age or younger.

Image courtesy of CDC

The Massachusetts Department of Public Health has created a webpage dedicated to immunization resources as well. There you’ll find advisories and alerts, upcoming events, a link to the CDC’s vaccination page, and DPH’s flu website. You’ll also find contact information for the Immunization Division of DPH in case you have any questions not addressed in some of the resources listed above. 

For all other questions, please contact us at reference.department@mass.gov and we’ll be happy to assist you!

Jessica Shrey
Reference Librarian