Kids who lack shots kept out of school

Some 2,500 seventh-graders remain out of school because they are out of compliance with a new state law requiring immunizations for tetanus, diphtheria and whooping cough.

School officials worry about both the educational and financial implications. Students are falling behind in their educations, while schools might be shortchanged in funding because of inaccurate enrollment counts.

School officials don't like turning away students.

"We want them to be in class," said Diana Taylor, director of health services for the Clark County School District, where school has been in session for three weeks.

Next Friday is the official count day for the 2008-2009 school year. Enrollment drives funding; the school district receives about $7,000 per student from the state. The last thing the cash-strapped school system wants is an undercount, one that fails to reflect students who will later become immunized and enroll.

Michael Rodriguez, a spokesman for the district, said, "It's hard to gauge the financial impact, but it will be felt."

Unofficially, the school system has counted 310,025 students so far, already exceeding last year's enrollment of 308,783. New students are continuing to enroll.

Because the late enrollees account for many of the non-immunized, school officials do not believe that many of the non-immunized seventh-graders have missed all three weeks of school.

Some of the non-immunized have slipped through the system and enrolled in school, Taylor said.

Rather than send them home, school officials have given them some leeway, asking them to get their shots within seven to 10 days.

Taylor said the schools want to be considerate of families' busy schedules, but also warn that their seventh-graders eventually might not be allowed to remain in school without the vaccinations. Exemptions are allowed on religious grounds.

"For the most part, the students who are supposed to be out (of school) are out," Taylor said.

She said the non-immunized students come from all walks of life, including well-to-do families too busy to immediately see a doctor and poorer families who don't have a car or who face a language barrier. Immunizations are available at the Southern Nevada Health District for between $16 and $24.

School nurses are careful about tracking students' immunization records and sending home reminders, Taylor said.

For the most part, families have complied. The number of non-immunized students is relatively small compared to in early August, when there were 15,976 students who had not gotten their shots.

Contact reporter James Haug at jhaug@reviewjournal.com or 702-799-2922.