Wolk bill protects children with appropriate vaccinations

Legislation creating statewide immunization registry get bipartisan support

AB 576 would consolidate immunization records from the nine regional immunization registries and other private patient/client systems such as Kaiser’s into a statewide central system and allow for the retrieval of these records regardless of whether a child moves, changes physicians or loses his/her health records. Specifically, the bill would secure future funding for the state’s Immunization Registry system, allow for interstate sharing of immunization registry data for families moving in and out of California, and allow a child’s physician and public health officials to access the child’s immunization history.

“I have introduced AB 576 to ensure that California is able to reach the national goal of having 90% of all children up-to-date on their required immunizations by 2010,” said Assemblywoman Wolk. “Currently, one out of five two-year-olds are not fully immunized leaving them susceptible to deadly diseases. California has a fragmented and costly system of record keeping. Immunizations are kept in paper charts, databases of health insurers, and posted on pieces of paper kept by parents. Due to incomplete or lost records, one in five children receives at least one unneeded immunization by the age of 3 years. That is simply unacceptable.”

“AB 576 will establish a statewide system that will cover all of California’s children, reducing the risk of disease, hospitalization and lost time from school and work. An integrated registry system will save California over $32 million annually. The cost of maintaining this system is estimated to be $12.5 million per year. As you can see, the cost saving of the program far exceeds the cost.”

AB 576 will be heard next week in Assembly Judiciary Committee. The bill’s supporters include the American Academy of Pediatrics, California Coalition for Childhood Immunization, American Nurses Association, California School Nurses Association, Merck & Co, Inc., All Kids by Two, National Health Services, Inc., Institute for Healthcare Advancement, Plumas County Public Health Agency, and Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. There is no opposition to this bill.