Fresno Unified School District will provide free immunizations at clinics in early August for students who are uninsured or have Medi-Cal coverage. The clinics will be at Tioga Middle School Room 36, 3232 E. Fairmont Ave., Fresno. Tioga is designated for the immunization clinics because it has a permanent Health Services Clinic, district spokeswoman Vanessa Ramirez said.
The clinics will be 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. during the weeks of Aug. 5-9 and Aug. 12-16. The first day of school for Fresno Unified students is Aug. 12.
More than 500 students were immunized last year, when the clinic was forced to close for nearly two days because of a broken storage refrigerator, Ramirez said.
State law requires that incoming kindergartners and seventh graders be able to show proof of immunization before entering school unless they can provide a written exemption signed by a physician.
Kindergartners must be immunized against common childhood diseases and other illnesses: diphtheria, pertussis, and tetanus (DPT); polio; measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR); hepatitis B; and chickenpox (varicella).
Students entering seventh grade must show proof of immunization against tetanus, reduced diphtheria, and acellular pertussis (Tdap), and measles, mumps, and rubella. All students transferring to Fresno Unified from out of district must show proof of immunizations.
Parents need to bring immunization record
Students coming to the immunization clinics should be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian, bring their current immunization record and bring their Medi-Cal card if they are covered by Medi-Cal insurance.
Those with private insurance should contact their heath care provider to schedule immunizations. Some immunizations may be available at area pharmacies.
“We want all of our students to stay healthy and in school every day,” Superintendent Bob Nelson said. “We encourage students with Medi-Cal or without insurance to take advantage of the immunization clinics at Tioga.”
Although in some parts of the country immunizations rates are lower, leading to outbreaks of disease, Fresno’s immunization rate was over 99.8% at the end of the last school year, Ramirez said. Some students may have been awaiting the next shot in a series and were included among the 0.2% of students not immunized, she said.
