The Long Beach Health Department is offering free Tdap vaccine to students in grades 7 - 12 at four public clinics scheduled before the school year begins.
The clinics are open to students in both public and private schools.
The Tdap vaccine provides protection from whooping cough, which has been present in California in epidemic levels in the last year.
A parent or guardian must be present and they are advised to bring any records of previous vaccines.
The free immunization clinics are a joint effort of the Health Department, Long Beach State's School of Nursing and the Long Beach Unified School District. The vaccine is provided by the federal Vaccine For Children's Program and the California Department of Public Health.
Free Tdap vaccine will be available:
-- Today from 3 - 6 p.m. at the Health Department, 2525 Grand Ave.
-- Wednesday and Thursday and Sept. 6, 1 - 3 p.m. each day at Tucker Elementary School, 2221 Argonne Ave.
All students in grades 7 -12 need to have a Tdap booster recorded in their school immunization record. The Tdap requirement was enacted into state law last fall and became effective July 1.
One dose of Tdap after the age of 7 meets the school requirement.
All students who have not already met the requirement will be asked for their Tdap record when they return to school.
More than 9,000 cases of whooping cough were reported in California in 2010, including 10 infant deaths. The number of cases was the most since 1947.
This year, more than 1,900 cases of whooping cough have been reported.
For information about Tdap and other school immunization requirements, visit www.ShotsForSchool.org. For information about clinics in Long Beach, call the Health Department's Immunization Project at 562.570.4212.
The clinics are open to students in both public and private schools.
The Tdap vaccine provides protection from whooping cough, which has been present in California in epidemic levels in the last year.
A parent or guardian must be present and they are advised to bring any records of previous vaccines.
The free immunization clinics are a joint effort of the Health Department, Long Beach State's School of Nursing and the Long Beach Unified School District. The vaccine is provided by the federal Vaccine For Children's Program and the California Department of Public Health.
Free Tdap vaccine will be available:
-- Today from 3 - 6 p.m. at the Health Department, 2525 Grand Ave.
-- Wednesday and Thursday and Sept. 6, 1 - 3 p.m. each day at Tucker Elementary School, 2221 Argonne Ave.
All students in grades 7 -12 need to have a Tdap booster recorded in their school immunization record. The Tdap requirement was enacted into state law last fall and became effective July 1.
One dose of Tdap after the age of 7 meets the school requirement.
All students who have not already met the requirement will be asked for their Tdap record when they return to school.
More than 9,000 cases of whooping cough were reported in California in 2010, including 10 infant deaths. The number of cases was the most since 1947.
This year, more than 1,900 cases of whooping cough have been reported.
For information about Tdap and other school immunization requirements, visit www.ShotsForSchool.org. For information about clinics in Long Beach, call the Health Department's Immunization Project at 562.570.4212.
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