Health Department

School Immunization Requirements for 2023-2024

Requisitos de Vacunación de la Escuela 2023-2024

The Wells County Health Department offers vaccine at no charge to those with Hoosier Healthwise, Medicaid, no insurance, or whose health insurance does not cover vaccination.  We can also file with most insurance plans.  If your child has insurance coverage for vaccinations, please call our office.  It is suggested that you call for an appointment for both childhood and adult vaccinations to assure availability of the nurses and vaccines and to verify insurance coverage.  Appointments can be scheduled for the hours of 8:00am-11:30am & 1:00 pm-4:00pm, Monday-Friday.

Hoosiers who received vaccine from a provider that uses the database CHIRP (Children and Hoosier’s Immunization Registry Program) now have direct access to their immunization records from any computer.  Providers may include schools, local health departments, and private health care facilities.  An individual can access their immunization record on the secure MyVaxIndiana website by entering their date of birth and a personal identification number (PIN) which must be requested from their healthcare provider or local health department in advance.  Immunization history, as well as recommended vaccination schedule can be viewed and downloaded or printed.

To find out if your healthcare provider uses CHIRP, or to find providers in your area that use CHIRP, click the link below:

Facilities using CHIRP

Why are infant and childhood immunizations so important?
These shots protect children from diseases such as measles, mumps, rubella (German measles), diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis (whooping cough), polio, Haemophilus influenza type b (Hib), hepatitis B, pneumococcal infections, rotovirus, influenza, and chickenpox.  By getting your child immunized, you will be fighting disease in two ways.  First, you will be protecting your own child.  Secondly, since healthy children don’t spread disease, you will be protecting other children as well.

Recommended reading: Parent’s Guide to Childhood Immunizations

What if my child did not get her shots when she was supposed to, or has gotten behind schedule?
The recommended childhood and adolescent immunization schedule is available in PDF format under the Health Safety Information section below.  If you have children who did not begin their immunizations at two months of age, or who have had only some of their shots, they can still be fully immunized. It is never too late to start getting immunizations.  If you child has only had some of his/her shots, he/she does not have to start over.  The shots already given will count.  We will continue the schedule where they left off.  If you have children who were not immunized when they were infants, contact your doctor or the Wells County Health Department.  The public health nurses will be able to tell you when to bring your children in for their shots and what shots they need.

Services Provided

• Adult Vaccinations
• Childhood Immunizations
• Blood Pressure Screenings
• Tuberculosis (TB) skin test – Those receiving a TB test must return to the Health Department or a health care provider within 48-72 hours to re-check the area of the skin that was tested.
• Head Lice Check
• Travel Immunizations (Typhoid Injection only)

For immunization questions, please contact our Nursing Department, the American Academy of Pediatrics, or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.  For specific information about travel immunizations you might need, please visit www.cdc.gov/travel.  To schedule travel immunizations, it is best to contact the Health Department at least six (6) weeks prior to traveling, as some immunizations require a series of shots over a period of time.

If your child has has immunizations at the Wells County Health Department before, and you would like a copy of your or your child’s vaccination records, please contact the Health Department at any time, Monday-Friday 8am-4:30pm.  If they have not received immunizations at the Wells County Health Department, see below:

Where are my (or my child’s) immunization records?
There is no central repository of vaccination records. The only records that exist are the ones you or your parents were given when the vaccines were administered, and the ones in the medical record of the doctor or clinic where the vaccines were given. Sometimes schools hold the vaccination records of children who attended, but these records are usually not kept for more than a year or two.

If you cannot locate your personal record or the record from your doctor, it may be necessary to repeat some of the vaccines or arrange blood tests to determine your immunity.

Where can I look for existing immunization records?

Children’s records

College student’s records

Military records

Who is responsible for keeping immunization records?
In most states, it is the responsibility of the parents of school-aged children, not family doctors, to provide vaccination records to the health department and to schools.

Today we move, travel, and change health providers more than we did in previous generations. Also, doctor’s offices and clinics store records of children’s vaccinations and the dates they were received only for a few years. If you keep an accurate record, you will be more likely to remember when to bring your children in for the next visit. These records also can prove that your children are up to date with their immunizations. In most states, children are not allowed to enter school or childcare unless they can prove that they meet all school immunization requirements.

Your doctor or clinic will be happy to give you an immunization record form for your use. Bring this record with you whenever you take your child to the doctor or clinic, and ask the doctor to sign and date the form each time a vaccination is given. That way, you can be sure that the immunization information is current and correct.

Finally, make sure you know if your doctor participates in an immunization registry. However, keep in mind that very few registries existed prior to the mid-1990’s.