Health and Social Services

Effective July 1, 2021, children 16 years of age and older, who are entering the 11th grade (including new entrants), must have received one booster dose of the meningococcal conjugate vaccine (MCV4) unless their initial dose was administered on or after their 16th birthday. Meningococcal disease is a serious bacterial illness that affects the brain and the spinal cord. Meningitis can cause shock, coma, and death within hours of the first symptoms. If your teen has not been vaccinated against meningococcal disease, we strongly recommend getting your 11th grader, aged 16 years or older, vaccinated before starting the 2022-23 school year. Getting MCV4 (meningococcal conjugate vaccine) now will not only help protect your child against the ongoing threat of meningitis but will also meet the new school entry requirement.

GDPH Parent Letter English
GDPH Parent Letter Spanish

Ask your pediatrician or local health department about other shots your child may need including:
• the human papillomavirus (HPV) series
• tetanus, diphtheria, pertussis shot (Tdap or Td booster)
• an annual flu vaccine; and
• catch-up immunizations, including chickenpox, MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) and hepatitis B.

For more information, visit http://dph.georgia.gov/vaccines-children or call (800) 848-3868.

Scoliosis screening is required for all students in the 6th and 8th grades who attend public school in Georgia. Scoliosis is a sideways curve of the spine. About 3% of children are affected by scoliosis. It can occur at any age but is often noticeable between the ages of 9 and 16, when growth occurs rapidly. Early detection is important to avoid potentially serious problems later in life if a spinal curve is not recognized, treated, and it continues to progress. The screening test is an observation of the child’s back when standing and bending forward.

There are options for how the screening can be completed:
• Submit a completed Form #4400, Certificate of Scoliosis screening. Form #4400 can be completed by a physician with an active GA license or person working under the supervision of a physician with an active GA license, the local health department, or licensed school nurse. A completed Form #4400 should be provided to the school within the first 90 days of 6th and 8th grade. Form #4400 can be found at www.dph.georgia.gov.
OR
• Children can participate in a school scoliosis screening event. Students without a completed Form #4400 on file more than 90 days after the start of school will be asked to participate in scoliosis screening during a school screening event

Parents or guardians can choose to not have their student screened for scoliosis by selecting the opt-out option on Form #4400 or opt-out of the school scoliosis screening event later in the
school year.