13,710 High School Students Could Be Suspended For Incomplete Immunization Records

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More than 13,000 students could be suspended this September due to out of date immunization records, according to the Windsor Essex County Health Unit.

The Immunization of School Pupils Act requires all students in Ontario to be up to date on immunizations, according to the Health Unit. They say public health units are to maintain and review vaccine records for every student attending school in their region and those not up-to-date can be suspended from school for up to 20 days.

As part of the work to prevent the spread of vaccine preventable diseases, the Health Unit says they recently completed a review of all secondary student immunization records. At this time, they say there are 13,710 secondary students with records considered to be incomplete. The Health Unit says these students are either overdue for one or more vaccines or they have not submitted their updated records to the Health Unit.

The Health Unit says notices were mailed to affected students this week specifying which required vaccine(s) are missing from the student’s record and providing information on how to update immunization information with the Health Unit. Options for students and their families include:

1. Submitting updated immunization records to the WECHU:

•     Secure Online Reporting: https://immune.wechu.org
•     Phone: 519-960-0231 or 1-800-265-5822 extension 1222 (toll-free)
•     Fax: 519-258-7288

2. Contacting their health care provider to obtain information and any missing vaccinations.

3. Booking an appointment at a WECHU Immunization Clinic:
The WECHU is hosting daily clinics in the community and at the Health Unit offices by appointment only. Public health nurses will be available to update the student’s immunization record and/or administer vaccines for Hepatitis B, HPV, and Meningococcal disease if needed. An appointment can be booked online at www.wechu.org/getimmunized or by calling 519-258-2146 Ext. 4500.

The Health Unit says students with incomplete immunization records at the start of the 2022/2023 school year (September) will receive a suspension notice, suspending them from school for up to 20 days.