Doctors warn that the recent drop in vaccination rates may lead to outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases as kids return to school and day care this fall.
“Herd immunity is something that keeps our kids safe, and if we can’t rely on it, measles and whooping cough can easily come back. They affect kids much more than COVID,” said Dr. Katherine Williamson, pediatrician at Mission Hospital in Southern California and president of the Orange County chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics.
An outbreak of a vaccine-preventable disease could overwhelm hospitals at a time when they’re already stressed from COVID-19.
