Immunization budget cuts could leave Utah kids without vaccine
SALT LAKE CITY – Federal budget cuts could mean hundreds of thousands of Utah children will go without vaccinations. These are the kids whose families fall between the cracks. They don’t have jobs with preventative insurance benefits, but their parents make too much to qualify for Federal programs.Starting in January, 11 percent of Utah children may have a more difficult time getting vaccinated. A Federal budget cut to the CDC is trickling down to state health departments nationwide. Utah lost another 22% of its immunization budget, which has been shrinking for several years. 1.6 million dollar budget that remains means under-insured kids may go without. Dr. William Cosgrove is a Utah pediatrician and on the Immunization Sub-committee for The American Academy of Pediatrics. He says that accounts for eleven percent of Utah children. These children have qualified for care under a state run program for the past decade. “This 11 percent are from employed families, if they were unemployed they would qualify for Medicaid and we could get them vaccinated. We are talking about the working poor.”Dr. Cosgrove says the result of not vaccinating such a large percentage of the population could be catastrophic. “We’re going to have more outbreaks. We are going to have a lot of danger, and health care costs, and fear, just simply because these kids are left unvaccinated. He says this is also a financial issue for state. He says in this case, an ounce of prevention really is worth a pound of cure. He says even a minor outbreak comes at a cost. For example, last spring, when an unimmunized Utah child traveled to Europe and brought back measles it took thousands of dollars and months to contain. “It cost the health department about $300 thousand dollars just to deal with the outcome of one child left unvaccinated.” The state health department and local pediatricians are now asking Utah lawmakers to make up the budget shortfall. The Utah Department of Health has asked the governor to put vaccinations into his budget proposal. they will urge Utah lawmakers to take up the issue when they return to Capitol Hill early next year. .
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Tags: Budget Cuts, Kids