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Immunization Rates Among California Kindergartens

California has seen an uptick in vaccination rates since a 2014 Disneyland measles outbreak spread to scores of people in multiple states. A study in the Journal of the American Medical Association said the outbreak could be attributed to substandard vaccination rates.

Data from the immunization branch of the California Department of Public Health show that the proportion of kindergartners in all schools who are fully immunized rose from 90.8 percent in 2014 to 92.9 percent in the 2015-2016 school year. However, the rates in private schools are significantly lower.

As of July 2016, children entering school or child care for the first time must be vaccinated for measles, mumps, whooping cough and other infectious diseases with no religious or personal exemptions allowed. (The requirement can be waived for children with immune deficiencies and certain other health conditions. It does not apply to home-based private schools or independent study programs.) The rates in this graphic reflect rates before the new law took effect.