Local agencies to help 8th graders and seniors get Meningococcal vaccine
Local health care agencies are ready to help 8th graders and high school seniors get their required Meningococcal vaccine. All 8th graders and high school seniors in the State of Missouri are required to have at least one dose of the vaccine before they start school.
Parents are required to be present to sign permission forms for the immunization. Proof of the immunization must be turned into the child’s school before school starts. Students will not be allowed to start school without it.
Mercy Clinic offers the vaccine and will also provide immunization clinics for the Menactra vaccine (Meningococcal vaccine) from 5 to 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 9, and again on Tuesday, Aug. 16, the day before school starts. For more information about Mercy Clinic, call 573-336-5100.
PCRMC Waynesville Medical Plaza in Waynesville also offers the vaccine. For more information call 573-842-4000.
General Leonard Wood Army Community Hospital’s Allergy and Immunization Clinic offers the vaccine to Tricare-eligible students. For more information call 573-596-1768.
The vaccine also may be obtained through Walmart Pharmacy. For more information call 573-336-4323.
Ozark Family-Centered Medical Home in St. Robert may offer the vaccine. For more information, call 573-596-0064.
Many insurance companies will cover the cost – an estimated $225 per vaccine without insurance or other assistance – of the shot and many clinics will file insurance claims for their patients. In addition, students who qualify for the VFC Program (see VFC eligibility requirements below) may also get their shot at Mercy at a cost of $23.50. In addition, Mercy offers Charity Care, which upon completion of the form may allow the vaccine to be discounted from 25 to 100% for eligible families.
The Pulaski County Health Department will offer the Meningococcal vaccine for $9 for eligible children through the Vaccines for Children (VFC) Program. To be eligible for the VFC program, a student must be 18 years old or younger, Medicaid eligible, uninsured, have an insurance plan that does not cover immunizations or an American Indian or Alaska Native. Walk-in Immunization Clinics are held at the Pulaski County Health Department’s Crocker location (101 12th Street) on Mondays from 7 a.m.- 5 p.m. and Wednesdays from 8 a.m.- 4 p.m. Appointments may be made for other days. The health department’s Waynesville Immunization Clinic (704 Historic Rt. 66 Suite 104) is held on Thursdays from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. For more information, parents may call the Health Department at 573-736-2217 for clinic hours.
The state of Missouri is requiring the Meningococcal vaccine and all high school seniors are required to have two doses, unless the first dose was administered when the student was 16 years of age or older.
As with all vaccines, a religious and/or medical exemption is allowed. The religious exemption must be obtained from the Pulaski County Health Department and must be completed and filed with the school nurse prior to the start of the school year. A medical exemption must be completed by a physician and be filed with the school nurse prior to the start of the school year.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Meningococcal disease is rare but serious and can be fatal. About the disease:
- Up to 1 in 5 survivors suffer long-term disabilities, such as brain damage, loss of limb(s), deafness and more
- About 10 to 15 out of 100 people infected with meningococcal disease will die
- Teenagers and young adults are more prone to getting the disease
- The disease can kill a child in just 24 hours
- It’s difficult to diagnose because most common symptoms are similar to those of the influenza (flu)