Childhood vaccines available for under-insured children and some others

Children without health insurance or who are under-insured can receive immunizations at the Visiting Nurse Association of Cape Cod in South Dennis. Children who identify as an American Indian or Alaskan Native or whose parent is American Indian or Native Alaskan are also eligible.

The clinics are held from 9 a.m. to 12 noon on the third Monday of the month at the VNA’s South Dennis office at 434 Route 134, Bldg. G.

“Most of our referrals come from school nurses when children from other countries enter the school system and need immunizations to meet the Massachusetts Department of Public Health immunization requirements,” said Mary Mahan, RN, BSN, Immunization Public Health Nurse for the VNA of Cape Cod. “Parents can contact us directly, as well.”

Children who attend the clinic come from other states that don’t have the same requirements as Massachusetts or have arrived from other countries such as Brazil, Haitii, Pakistan, and India, where they don’t always receive the same vaccines or may be on a different schedule than what Massachusetts requires.

“This past year, we had a couple of children who came with their families seeking asylum,” said Mahan. “They had no immunization records with them, and they had to start all over with their immunizations even if they had them in their own country. Their parents didn’t mind and were very appreciative that we could do this for them.”

The VNA provides these vaccines free of charge through the federal Vaccines for Children Program which covers children up to the age of 19.

Mahan said the difficult part is reading and interpreting the vaccine records from other countries. Some of the vaccines have different names, and dates can be logged differently than in the United States where month, day, and year are the same across the board. Other countries often use the day first, then month, and year in their records.

Another challenge is helping parents understand the process when English is not their first language.

“We have an interpreter system with Cape Cod Healthcare,” Mahan said. “We can reach an interpreter by phone, and they will interpret for the parent throughout the entire time they are at the clinic. They can explain the paperwork, answer questions, and help the families understand what we will be doing for their children.”

Vaccines Available

The clinic provides the following vaccines:

• DTaP: Contains full doses of diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis (whooping cough).
• TDaP: Has to be specially ordered. It contains a full dose of tetanus and a lower dose of diphtheria and pertussis. The lowercase “a” in both vaccines means acellular.
• TD: Tetanus, diphtheria
• Polio
• MMR: Measles, mumps, and rubella.
• Varicella: Chicken pox.
• Hepatitis B
• Hepatitis A
• Meningococcal vaccines: MenACWY (ages 11-12 and at age 16) and MenB (ages 16-18)
• Seasonal Flu vaccine

“While childhood diseases such as polio and diphtheria have been eliminated in the United States, they are prevalent in other regions of the world,” said Mahan.

She reminds parents that while it is a good thing to question whether their child needs a vaccine, there are important reasons for getting them.

Vaccination prevents outbreaks, so, if you decline the vaccine for your child, they run the risk of getting the disease, and there were recent outbreaks of measles and pertussis in the U.S.

“It makes me feel good to give the vaccines and parents are appreciative of what we do,” said Mahan.

To make an appointment or for further information, parents can call the VNA Public Health and Wellness line at 508-957-7423.