JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – An annual survey of vaccination rates of kindergartners in Florida finds 93.8% are up to date on their shots -- slightly below the Florida Department of Health's goal of 95% but on par from the year before.
The vaccination rate has come under more scrutiny as the country experiences a measles outbreak that has spread to 20 states, including Florida. Since the first of the year, the CDC has confirmed more than 500 cases of the highly contagious disease.
The data, from the 2018-19 school year, also found the vaccination rate for seventh graders was above the state's 96% goal. In both grades, a slightly higher percentage of public school students were vaccinated than those in private schools.
The annual survey finds the percent of students in Florida immunized has increased every year this decade.
Religious exemptions for kindergartners went up half a percent across the state, while temporary medical exemptions went down nearly half a percent.
The county-by-county breakdown finds St. Johns County had among the lowest kindergarten vaccination rates in the state (92.7%), and the rate has dropped from last year. Union County's 96.4% rate is among the highest in Florida, and Clay County's 96.3% rate is also well above the state average.
Immunization rates, county-by-county
Florida Department of Health data