Summer time is the perfect time to make sure your child is healthy and up-to-date on all of their required vaccinations before school begins August 1.
Avoid the back-to-school rush and consider making an appointment with your healthcare provider for any needed check ups, sports physicals, and immunizations. The Bulloch County Health Department is also a resource for vaccines and certain health services if you do not have a provider.
Georgia law requires children attending a nursery, childcare facility, pre-kindergarten, Head Start program, or public or private school (kindergarten – 12th grade) to be protected from certain vaccine-preventable diseases. A healthcare provider or Health Department can provide the vaccines and the key documents a child must have on file to enroll in a Georgia school for the first time:
- Georgia Immunization Certificate (Form 3231);
- Georgia Certificate of Vision, Hearing, Dental, and Nutrition Screening (Form 3300); and (3) a
- A Certified Birth Certificate. If your child was born in any county in Georgia, and you do not have your child's birth certificate, you can obtain a certified copy of their birth certificate from the Bulloch County Health Department. You will need to show your Georgia driver’s license or state identification card.
Key Immunization Reminders
Parents of rising seventh-grade and eleventh-grade students will need to make sure their child has received the following vaccines so they may submit the required updated Form 3231 to their child’s school:
- Rising seventh-graders: Children born on or after January 1, 2002, who will either be attending seventh grade or be a first-time student enrolling in a Georgia school in grades 8 through 12 must have received one dose of Tdap vaccine and one dose of meningococcal vaccine. A first-time student means any child entering any school in Georgia for the first time or entering after having been absent from a Georgia school for more than 12 months or one school year.
- Rising eleventh-graders: Effective July 1, 2021, children 16 years of age and older who are entering the 11th grade (including “first-time” students) must have received one booster dose of the meningococcal conjugate vaccine (MCV4), unless their initial dose was administered on or after their 16th birthday. Meningococcal disease is a serious bacterial illness that affects the brain and the spinal cord. Meningitis can cause shock, coma, and death within hours of the first symptoms. To help protect your children and others from meningitis, Georgia law requires students be vaccinated against this disease, unless the child has an exemption.
The Bulloch County Health Department is located at 1 West Altman Street in Statesboro, and the number is 1-855-473-4374. If your child does not have health insurance or their health plan doesn't cover these vaccines, call the local health department and ask about getting no-cost or low-cost vaccines. For more information, visit Georgia Department of Public Health's website or call (800) 848-3868.
The Official Code of Georgia provides for only two types of exemptions from immunization requirements:
- Medical: Medical exemption for a vaccine should be filled in only when there is a physical disability or condition that contraindicates immunization for that particular vaccine. There must be an annual review of medical exemptions, and certificates must be re-issued with or without indication of exemption. O.C.G.A. §20-2-771(d)
- Religious: For a child to be exempt from immunizations on religious grounds, the parent/guardian must furnish the school with a notarized Affidavit of Religious Objection to Immunization (DPH Form 2208). The affidavit does not expire. O.C.G.A. §20-2-771(e)
Thank you for helping us ensure our students are safe and healthy.
