AVON, Ind. (AP) _ State and national health officials are pushing for parents to vaccinate their infants on time in the face of measles outbreaks.
Assistant U.S. Surgeon General Anne Schuchat and State Health Commissioner William VanNess announced on Wednesday at Avon's Indiana University Health West a national initiative to increase immunizations, including sending every newborn in Indiana a congratulatory card with a sheet to track vaccinations.
Both say vaccinating infants on schedule can protect them from deadly diseases. They say children whose parents wait until they're about to enter school could be vulnerable.
The move comes days after the Marion County Public Health Department said that visitors to a tea shop in Indianapolis could have been exposed to Hepatitis A, another disease that can be vaccinated against. Measles outbreaks have been reported nationally.
