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Vaccine Preventable Diseases

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Vaccine Preventable Diseases (VPD)

Florida Health

Disease Control

The COVID-19 pandemic is affecting health care seeking behavior, which may be impacting the diagnosis and reporting of hepatitis A, pertussis, and varicella cases that are shown in this report. For more information on the COVID-19 pandemic in Florida, please visit FloridaHealthCOCVID19.gov.



Vaccine Preventable Disease Surveillance Report December 2021

Hepatitis A

A graph showing hepatitis A activity has fluctuated each month from January 2021 – December 2021. In December 16 cases were reported.
  • Hepatitis A activity increased from last month and was below the previous 5-year average.
  • 27 cases were reported in December.
  • Incidence remained highest among adults 30-39 years old.
  • 89% of cases were not up-to-date on hepatitis A vaccinations or had unkown vaccination status.

Pertussis

A graph showing pertussis activity has fluctuated each month from January 2021 – December 2021. In December 13 cases were reported.
  • Pertussis activity decreased from last month and was below the previous 5-year average.
  • 13 cases were reported in December.
  • Compared to July 2019 - December 2019, there was an 88% decrease in reported cases in the past 6 months.
  • In the past 6 months, the average incidence rate for <1 year old was 19 times lower compared to July 2019 - December 2019.

Varicella

A graph showing Varicella activity has fluctuated each month from January 2021 – December 2021. In Decmber 51 cases were reported.
  • Varicella activity increased from last month and was below the previous 5-year average.
  • 51 cases were reported in December.
  • Incidence was highest among infants <1 year old.
  • 63% of cases were not up to date on varicella vaccinations or had unknown vaccination status.

For all vaccine-preventable diseases, timely and complete vaccination is the best way to prevent infection. Although vaccinated individuals can still become infected with diseases like pertussis or varicella, in general, those who have received at least 1 dose of vaccine have less severe outcomes than those who have never been vaccinated for the disease.

A map showing the proportion of children ages 4–18 years with religious exemptions by county as of December 31, 2021. Counties with a proportion of 0.7%–2.0% are: Hardee Gadsden Liberty Hendry Calhoun Hamilton Bradford Jackson Taylor Dixie DeSoto Madison Glades Washington Putnam Franklin Levy Counties with a proportion of 2.1%–3.5% are: Okeechobee Union Baker Wakulla Gilchrist Holmes Lafayette Jefferson Leon Miami-Dade Nassau Sumter Polk Hillsborough Suwannee Highlands Bay Counties with a proportion of 3.6%–4.9% are: Gulf Clay Lake Orange Duval Citrus Escambia St_Lucie Indian_River Marion Manatee Alachua Palm_Beach Pasco Broward Osceola Volusia Counties with a proportion of 5.0%–9.3% are: Santa_Rosa Charlotte Seminole Columbia Lee Brevard Hernando Pinellas Collier Martin Monroe Okaloosa St_Johns Flagler Walton Sarasota.

Unvaccinated children are at increased risk of vaccine-preventable diseases like measles, pertussis, and varicella. Communities with a higher proportion of religious exemptions (REs) to vaccination are at increased risk of vaccine-preventable disease transmission.

The proportion of children age 4–18 years with new REs are increasing each month. Statewide, the estimated prevalence of REs among children age 4–18 years old is 4.3% with individual counties ranging from 0.7 – 9.3%. In December 2020, the statewide prevalence was 3.7%, and the prevalence has gradually increased each month since.

To learn more about REs at the local level, please visit FloridaHealth.gov/REmap.

All REs are required to be entered into Florida SHOTS (State Health Online Tracking System), Florida’s statewide immunization registry. The map above includes REs registered in Florida SHOTS through December 31, 2021.

 

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