GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- The Kent County Health Department says changes to the Michigan Immunization law made in January of 2015 have proved to be a success.
A press conference was held at Central High School in Grand Rapids on Thursday morning to release the newly collected numbers regarding vaccinations.
When the law changed last year parents were required to attend a counseling session before recieving a state mandated waiver, which is what you need in order to send your children to school without their vaccinations. This did not apply to those who could not get vaccinated due to other medical conditions.
The Kent County Health Department was happy to announce that since those changes in 2015, they've seen a 39% decrease in the amount of people who chose to go through the process to get a waiver. That translates into more children being vaccinated.
While the department says they're seeing a positive trend in the numbers, there is 2 house bills that are posing a threat to this progress.
House Bills 5126 and 5127 are putting the Health Department on edge that these new changes could be repealed.
Overall, the Health Department says these numbers are a sign of a positive change for the children in our community.
