Doctors Worried Over PA Vaccination Numbers

Experts urge parents to seek qualified medical advice before seeking exemptions

By Staff Reports
The Tube City Almanac
September 23, 2025
Posted in: State & Region

Measles cases in the United States plummeted after vaccines became available in the 1960s. The disease was considered all but eradicated in the U.S. until recently. (Graphic by Julius Senegal via Wikimedia Commons, licensed under Creative Commons CC BY-SA 4.0)

Doctors are worried about a new analysis that showed that Pennsylvania’s childhood vaccination rates have slipped again.

For the second year in a row, kindergarten immunizations fell below the 95 percent target set by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Becky Ludwick, vice president of public policy for Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children, said state data show a steady decline over the past seven years, even before COVID-19. The report highlighted a decline in vaccinations for measles, mumps and rubella, otherwise known as MMR vaccines.

“In the most recent school year available, we saw that there were almost 8,000 kindergartners who weren’t up-to-date on their MMR vaccine,” Ludwick said. “That has doubled since the 2017-2018 school year.”

Health experts nationwide have said that false, incomplete or misleading information about the safety of childhood vaccines — much of it spread by social media on the Internet — has left some parents questioning whether the shots are necessary.

Many doctors also have expressed alarm over opinions expressed by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who President Trump appointed as U.S. secretary of health and human services earlier this year.

Kennedy, a vaccine skeptic, does not have a medical degree or a scientific degree, and has been accused of promoting discredited conspiracy theories about vaccination and other medical topics.

The report from Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children said falling MMR vaccination rates nationwide have left some communities vulnerable to measles outbreaks.

Once a common childhood illness, measles is a highly infectious virus spread through the air. It was considered practically eradicated in the United States until recently.

According to the Mayo Clinic, although most people recover quickly from measles in about 10 days, the disease can have serious complications for small children, people with weakened immune systems and pregnant women. Serious side effects can include pneumonia, bronchitis, ulcers in the eye, and brain damage.

Ludwick said other recommended vaccines are also trending downward. Nationally, 93 percent of kindergartners are covered, and from 2023 to 2024, only 11 states reached the 95 percent benchmark.

Ludwick said that in Pennsylvania, families may seek several different exemptions if they choose not to get their children vaccinated, including for medical, religious and philosophical reasons.

“A medical exemption, which a physician would have to sign off saying that child or those children, that they are not able to receive the vaccine,” Ludwick said. “That’s been pretty steady as far as a small group of kids who have that medical exemption, who cannot be vaccinated.”

She said the religious exemptions have grown the most over the last several years. The report noted exemptions for religious reasons now account for 2.5 percent of all student exemptions.

She said vaccines are offered at no cost through the Pennsylvania Vaccines for Children program.

“Even if a child is insured, maybe it’s an underinsured family, (they) may have insurance that wouldn’t cover vaccines,” Ludwick said. “They can get free vaccines through this program, whether they’re uninsured or underinsured. Families can rely on that as well.”

Income-eligible families or those who have children with complex needs can get Medicaid, and coverage through the Children’s Health Insurance Program is available to most kids for free, she said. Families can also use the state marketplace, Pennie, though some federal aid may not be available by the end of the year.

Ludwick said the rising number of unvaccinated kids highlights the importance of parents talking with their pediatrician. Conflicting federal guidance has left families confused, she said, so trusted medical professionals are the best source for questions on vaccine safety and policy.

This story was reported by Danielle M. Smith of Public News Service with additional research by Jason Togyer of Tube City Community Media Inc. 

Originally published September 23, 2025.

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