AAP Vermont Chapter

Voice of Vermont kiddo, speaking up and speaking out 🥰

Eight-year-old Oliver from Vermont recently wrote a letter to his local newspaper encouraging kids in his community to stay up to date on their vaccines to keep themselves and those around them healthy.

“I have gotten all my vaccines. They have helped me stay healthy even though I have asthma. I’m really worried that people will start getting sick if they don’t have vaccines,” said Oliver.

Vaccines remain the best tool we have to keep kids and their communities healthy and thriving. Thank you, Oliver, for sharing such an important message!

Tracy Tyson is a pediatrician and the president-elect of Vermont’s chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics. She told lawmakers in Tuesday’s hearing that her organization sees Vermont as setting an important example by solidifying its own state vaccine schedule separate from federal recommendations.

She still worries there is serious harm in the current landscape of shifting federal guidelines. Even though children can still get the vaccines and insurance will cover them, the confusion that many parents face about what protections their child should receive and when is dangerous, she said. It hinders “true, informed consent,” Tyson told lawmakers.

“It may seem like it’s giving more autonomy to families, but what it’s giving is more confusion, and that is going to lead to more lapses in care,” she said of the altered vaccine schedule.

Vermont Health officials reaffirm existing childhood vaccine schedule in light of federal changes - VTDigger Many still fear future restrictions on access and are working with the Legislature to safeguard Vermont’s ability to buy and administer the vaccines to those who want and need them.

Vermont Clinicians Reaffirm Unwavering Commitment to Evidence-Based Medicine -https://vtmd.org/client_media/files/VMS%20Immunization%20Statement%20.pdf

Thank you Vermont Department of Health for your steady guidance and partnership.

You may have heard that the CDC changed its vaccine recommendations for children. We want to be clear that Vermont’s recommendations and school-age vaccine requirements have not changed. In Vermont, kids can still get vaccinated at their doctor’s office or pharmacy as usual.

It's OK to have questions. The Health Department remains committed to providing clear, evidence-based health guidance for all families in Vermont. We encourage you to talk to your health care provider and rely on trusted medical sources — like the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) — when deciding what’s right for you and your family.

Visit HealthVermont.gov/VaccineInfo for the Health Department’s recommendations and information.

Vermont has updated it's child passenger safety law to more closely align with AAP recommendations.

The law is the minimum required. Pediatricians recommend that children stay in the car seat and position until they fully outgrow that phase. So check the weight limit before you change. You may not need to transition them as soon as you think.

Vermont’s Latest Child Passenger Safety Law: What Parents Need to Know New Vermont's law mandates that children must be secured in a car seat until they turn five years old

Vermont! Check out http://GunSafeVT.org for information on free cable locks, out of home firearm storage, and info on Extreme Risk Protection Orders, Relief From Abuse orders, and the new secure storage law.