ATLANTA — As students return to school, vaccination rates among children in Georgia continue to decline, raising concerns about herd immunity and the potential reemergence of preventable diseases.
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According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the percentage of Georgia kindergarteners fully vaccinated with the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine has dropped from 93% in the 2019-2020 school year to 88% in the 2023-2024 school year. This decline is below the critical threshold needed to maintain herd immunity.
“When over 95% of the population is vaccinated, we tend to hold the diseases at bay,” Dr. Joanna Dolgoff, a Wellstar pediatrician, told Channel 2’s Candace McCowan. “When the numbers drop below that number, we start to see the reemergence of some of these diseases.”
Dr. Stephen Patrick, chair of health policy and management and pediatrician at Emory Rollins School of Health, is having the conversation with parents often.
“Every parent is just trying to do the right thing by their kid. There are just so many data inputs right now,” he said. “I think that is just sowing some seeds of doubt in parents.”
The decline in vaccination rates has been attributed to increasing vaccine hesitancy among parents. Emory’s Rollins School of Public Health has identified this as a significant issue to monitor.
Despite the challenges, Patrick emphasized the importance of trusting healthcare professionals.
“Consistently when we ask parents who they trust, their child’s doctor is the most trusted source,” he said. “I always found that when you sit down and have a respectful and empathetic conversation, most of the time it works out well.”
Parents like Carly Brown express concern over the falling vaccination rates.
“The vaccinations are the protection, and when other people are not doing it, we are all suffering as a community,” she said.
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