Click here to subscribe today or Login.
WILKES-BARRE — The city Health Department will host a Back-to-School Immunization Clinic for eligible seventh-graders free of charge during City Hall for a Day, from 1 to 5 p.m. Tuesday at Kistler Elementary School, 301 Old River Road, Wilkes-Barre.
Students entering seventh grade are required to have one dose TDAP (tetanus, diphtheria, acellular pertussis) and one dose MCV (meningococcal conjugate vaccine).
The department also will offer the HPV (human papilloma virus) vaccine, which is not required for school but highly recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Academy of Family Physicians for preteen girls and boys at age 11 to 12.
HPV can cause cancers of both female and male sex organs and the mouth and throat. For teens who have not started the series at 11 or 12, it’s not too late. It is still beneficial to get the vaccine during the teen years.
You are eligible for free vaccine if you are on Medicaid, if your insurance does not cover the vaccine, or if you are uninsured. The child must be accompanied by a parent/guardian and a copy of their immunization record is needed.
Call 570-208-4283 or 570-208-4284 with questions or visit www.wilkes-barre.city/health.