Getting vaccinated

With Las Cruces Public School students going back to school Friday, July 25, for Kindergarten, sixth and ninth grades and July 28 for the other grades, it’s also time to think about getting children up-to-date with vaccinations.

This year a measles outbreak spread across various counties around New Mexico and Texas and reached Doña Ana County last spring.

Robert Nott, communications director for New Mexico Department of Health, told the Bulletin that as of July 18, the number of people who have become infected with measles is at 95.

The best defense against catching measles or other infectious disease is through updating vaccinations, Nott said.

Las Cruces public health offices offer free vaccinations for any child, regardless of insurance status.

The Las Cruces Public Health Office, 1170 N. Solano Dr., will provide no cost, back-to-school vaccinations for all children aged 18 and younger from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on July 25, 28 and 29.

Nott said there are free vaccination events through August 30 and those can be found at https://hsc.unm.edu.

“As children return to school, it is important they stay healthy for attendance for continued learning,” Nott said.

Nott said that as of July 15, 41,871 New Mexicans have received the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine.

“Nearly 23,000 of those shots were for children,” he said.

For more info: https://www.nmhealth.org/publication/view/policy/9106/