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Free school immunizations offered all summer at Bear Run Clinic

By Wesley LeBlanc Staff Writer
Posted 6/12/19

ORANGE PARK – Clay County students who still need to get their required immunizations for the next school year still can get their shots at the county department of health.

The Clay County …

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Free school immunizations offered all summer at Bear Run Clinic


Posted

ORANGE PARK – Clay County students who still need to get their required immunizations for the next school year still can get their shots at the county department of health.

The Clay County Department of Health Bear Run Clinic is offering all of the required immunizations for Clay County students Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. this summer. The Emergency Preparedness Coordinator for the department, Sonny Rodgers, said this is something they do each year to help parents get it done early.

“We do this drive every year to get all children up to date on immunizations for the upcoming school year and we start this drive so early so that our parents aren’t having to wait until the last minute,” Rodgers said. “Instead of waiting in a three-or-four-hour line, they can come in at their leisure anytime this summer, likely without a line.”

Parents don’t need an appointment to update their children’s immunizations at the Bear Run Clinic, according to Rodgers.

“Anytime, Monday through Friday, is fine and there’s no appointments required because we just do walk-ins,” Rodgers said.

The required shots for kindergarten-through-12th grade students are four or five doses of diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis vaccine, three doses of the hepatitis B vaccine, three, four or five doses of the polio vaccine, two doses of the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine and their required doses of the varicella vaccine.

Seventh graders also need one dose of the tetanus-diphtheria-pertussis vaccine and an updated 680 form to include the new dose of the tetanus-diphtheria-pertussis vaccine.

Students can receive their vaccines at the Bear Run Clinic for free. They can also get the optional but recommended vaccines, such as hepatitis A. For parents wishing to put their child in daycare services within the county, the Bear Run Clinic offers free immunizations required for that, too.

The Clay County Department of Health is an arm of the Florida Department of Health and according to Rodgers, Clay County skews quite well in terms of health, especially in terms of immunizations.

“We do this drive every year and the turnout is always huge,” Rodgers said. “That’s why we push so hard to have this information out there. We want our parents to know that they can do this as early as June.”

For anyone looking to take advantage of this free immunization drive, a parent or guardian with a child younger than 18 must give medical consent, bring a photo identification and bring all current immunization records. For a student over 18-years-old, they need a photo ID and their current immunization records.

After receiving the required immunizations, the student or guardian will get the 680 Form they need to turn into their school. With that complete, they’re all set for the next school year.

“We just want to push everyone to get their immunizations early,” Rodgers said. “If a student doesn’t have these done, they won’t be able to attend school, and nobody wants that to happen.”