Toronto still trying to get students ‘back on track’ with vaccinations after COVID-19 pandemic

Toronto Public Health has begun sending out letters to Grade 11 students who are behind on their routine vaccinations, warning that they could face suspension if they do not comply.

Toronto’s Associate Medical Officer of Health Dr. Vinity Dubey said the city is still working to boost vaccination rates following the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We are really trying to catch up on students’ vaccinations and we know that by sending letters out and urging parents and students to get their vaccines and report them to public health, we can actually get very high vaccination rates,” she told CP24 earlier this week.

She said it may take several weeks before all students receive the letter.

What vaccinations are students required to have?

The Immunization of School Pupils Act (ISPA), requires all children attending school in Ontario to be vaccinated against diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis (whooping cough), polio, measles, mumps, rubella and meningococcal disease. Children born after 2010 must also be vaccinated against chicken pox.

Are there exemptions?

Dubey said philosophical, religious, and medical exemptions are possible.

Why are Grade 11 and Grade 12 students so behind?

Dubey said those students were in Grade 7 and 8 at the height of the pandemic when school-based vaccine clinics did not run.

“They didn’t get those school-based vaccinations in Grade 7 or complete them in Grade 8 and so that’s part of the issue here and now we are just trying to get them back on track,” Dubey said.

What are the vaccination rates for high school students in Toronto?

Grade 7 students are vaccinated against Hepatitis B, Human papillomavirus (HPV), and Meningococcal disease as part of an in-school vaccination program. As of June 27, 2024, the Hep B vaccination rate for grade 9 to 12 students in Toronto is 55.2 per cent. The HPV vaccination rate for grade 9 to 12 students is 50.6 per cent.

Grade 12 students also appear to have fallen behind on getting the diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, and polio (DPTaP) vaccine. According to Toronto Public Health, the vaccination rate for DPTaP for Grade 12 students as of June 2024 was 46.5 per cent.

For measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR), the vaccination rate for Grade 12 students was 87.4 per cent.

Has there been an uptick in vaccine preventable illnesses?

“We’ve seen a number of measles cases in our province this year and if we are not vaccinated against measles we will absolutely see outbreaks,” Dubey said.

“We also know that one of the adolescent boosters includes whooping cough, or pertussis, and we have seen a rise in whooping cough this year and so we really want to be able to prevent these infections.”

Dr. Dina Kulik, pediatrician and founder of KidCrew, said some families don’t necessarily worry about many vaccine preventable illnesses, such as measles or whooping cough, because historically we haven’t seen a lot of cases.

But cases of those illnesses have been on the rise in recent years, she noted.

“As vaccine rates go down and as there is more resistance or hesitance around vaccines, we will absolutely see a rise in some of these illnesses, which can be quite devastating, can cause significant illness, can cause death in children,” she told CP24 on Thursday.

Can Toronto students catch up?

Dubey said the letters home can be very effective.

“We just finished assessing students who were born in 2016 and when we started out, only 29 per cent of them were up to date. When we finished the full cycle, 98 per cent are now in compliance with the legislation and many of them are up to date with their vaccinations,” Dubey told CP24.

“We do know that this process while cumbersome, some parents may not understand it, it will work to get our vaccination rates up and we will get that tremendous response as we do from our population.”

What happens if students remain unvaccinated?

Students who do not receive the required vaccinations could face suspension if they do not comply with the act.

Where do I go to get a vaccination that I missed?

Missed vaccinations can be booked through a primary care provider or at one of Toronto Public Health’s immunization clinics.