PROVIDENCE – Rhode Island’s immunization rates for teenagers are among the highest in the nation, the R.I. Department of Health announced Friday.
A report conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was based on a National Immunization Survey of children 13 to 17 years old.
The CDC report showed 90.1 percent of Rhode Island girls, and 87.8 percent of Rhode Island boys received at least one dose of the human papillomavirus vaccine, the highest rate in the country. Combined, 88.9 percent of Rhode Island teens had received at least one dose of the HPV vaccine; the nation’s average was 60.4 percent.
Rhode Island’s immunization rate for tetanus, diptheria and acellular pertussis, a combined vaccine called Tdap, ranked No. 2 in the nation behind Massachusetts for percent of teens that received at least one dose of Tdap vaccine at 95.4 percent. The U.S. average for at lease one dose of Tdap vaccination was 88 percent.
Teens in the Ocean State also ranked No. 1 for having received at least one dose of meningococcal conjugate vaccine, the highest rate in the country at 96.4 percent. The U.S. average was 82.2 percent.
“A core function of public health is preventing illnesses and injuries before they occur. Vaccines are one of the most effective prevention tools available to us today. Countless kids were spared the serious health consequences of many diseases because Rhode Island communities are so well vaccinated,” said Dr. Nicole Alexander-Scott, director of RIDOH.
