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Without proof, shots required
Immunization policy affects underclassmen
By David Cardenas
dcarden5@mscd.edu

A new immunization policy is requiring all Metro students who have completed less than 90 credit hours to show documented proof of certain vaccinations before Oct. 1, or they will not be allowed to register for the spring 2008 semester.

The required vaccinations are for measles, mumps and rubella, and students who need to receive the vaccines will have the option to get the immunization from the Auraria Health Center or go to their personal doctor.

The new policy came about after a mumps outbreak in 2000 in Iowa was seen moving west, and the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment expressed concerns that Metro could not provide the immunization status of all its students, said Steve Monaco, director of the Health Center.

“(The health department was) very concerned that in case of an outbreak we would not be able to control the disease, not knowing who was immunized and who was not,” Monaco said.

A task force was formed including all three campus institutions to look into implementing a plan to keep track of data regarding immunized students.

Metro and UCD are the only four-year colleges in Colorado that do not have an immunization policy, due largely to the fact that Auraria does not offer on-campus housing.

“It’s a state law that any four-year institution of higher education that has dormitories must have an immunization policy in place,” Monaco said. “We found out that the only (immunization) that was required in those institutions was the measles, mumps and rubella.”

The Health Center will provide the vaccination shots at $45, which means it will be offering the lowest price in town, Monaco said.

“We didn’t want to make this a moneymaker,” he said.

The decision to exempt students who have more than 90 credit hours came about because of a student-initiated request, and is meant to apply to seniors who will be graduating within an academic year. But Monaco said the Health Center does not think the policy will affect many students because state law has mandated since the ‘70s that K-12 public school students receive a series of immunizations.

“We’re estimating that 95 percent of our students will have already received these immunizations. All they have to do is show us the proof,” Monaco said.

Metro freshman Brad Davis feels that the new immunization policy is long overdue.

“I think it’s an excellent idea because it prevents diseases in the student body,” Davis said. “It should have been done a long time ago.”

Some students, however, think there might be an underlying agenda with the new policy.

“I don’t think it’s a good idea because I feel that vaccines are dangerous. (Doctors) persist in telling us that these vaccines are good for you, but the reality of it is that these vaccines can hurt you,” April Harris, a Metro sophomore, said. “It seems like this is the pharmaceutical companies’ agenda pushing these on us.”

No matter how students feel about the policy, recent events point to the seriousness of health issues on campus. Three years ago a student died from meningitis. Another student lost some of his limbs but managed to survive the deadliest form of the disease meningococcemia.

The Health Center will now be informing students of the importance of other immunizations besides the required vaccinations, Monaco said.

The meningitis vaccine costs $85 for any student who wishes to get it, but is not required by Metro. Monaco said 98 percent of students have not been immunized against meningitis.

“$85 isn’t much if you lose your life, so it’s all relative,” he said.