Florida
Vaccination rates among Florida kids lowest in decade
Lower vaccination rates in Florida
Evyn Moon reports
TAMPA, Fla. – The vaccination rate of Florida kindergartners has fallen to 90%, the lowest in more than a decade, and pediatricians across the state are concerned at the significant dip.
Although 90% may seem high, public health experts recommend a vaccination rate of at least 95%, because lower than that increases the risk of outbreaks.
“While 90% still sounds fantastic, if you think of all the children in the state of Florida, 10% of those kids not being vaccinated is quite a number,” said Dr. Rachel Dawkins, a Johns Hopkins All Children’s pediatrician. “We have seen drops in vaccination rates across the board and especially since COVID. We have a lot more people declining, things like the flu vaccine.”
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Doctors said the pandemic caused more parents to start questioning the standard shots most kids have always gotten to prevent diseases like hepatitis, measles, mumps, polio, chickenpox, among others.
“Vaccines are critically important,” Dawkins said. “I know that a lot of people feel like, ‘Why are we doing these? We don’t see these diseases,’ but we used to see a lot of these diseases, and they were prevented by vaccines and the diseases that we’re trying to prevent with vaccination can be deadly, especially in kids.”
A recent Gallup poll found 40% of Americans said it is extremely important for parents to make sure their kids are vaccinated – that’s down from 58% in 2019.
Most public schools in the Tampa Bay area require students to be vaccinated with the major shots, but Florida has a religious exemption, and data by the Department of Health shows more and more parents are using that exemption each month.
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Dawkins encouraged parents to express concerns to their pediatrician.
“As a pediatrician, we’re here for you and your family,” Dawkins said. “We want to talk to you about your concerns. I know it seems overwhelming, and you want to protect your child. This is really the best way to protect your child from illness is to get them vaccinated.”
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WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (CBS12) — Florida has become the country’s busiest hub for immigration arrests this year, with ICE agents in the Miami Field Office — which oversees Florida, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands — logging more detentions than any other region in the nation according to our news partners at the South Florida Sun Sentinel.
According to figures reported by the New York Times, agents under the Miami office are averaging about 120 arrests a day, totaling nearly 9,900 arrests as of March 10. That pace puts Florida well ahead of other regions experiencing federal “surge” operations, including Minnesota, where a high-profile enforcement push drew national scrutiny after two U.S. citizens were killed.
The following information comes from a March 3, 2024, article in the Naples Daily News.
Founded in 1953, the first modern medical facility opened on Fourth Street South in March 1956 with the name Naples Community Hospital. The hospital’s first baby was born the next day.
Ten years later, in 1966, the hospital added 50 more beds, an emergency department and several specialized departments. Later that decade, several more departments were added including an intensive care unit.
In 1970, the hospital expanded the original building to six stories and began construction on a new, two-story building next door. This building was later expanded to six stories and was dubbed the “South Tower” while the first tower was called the “North Tower.”
Construction on the Downtown Naples facility continued in the 1980s and on Oct. 15, 1984, The North Collier Health Center opened its doors. This facility was opened as a satellite facility of the main hospital. Shortly after, on Feb. 4, 1985, another satellite facility, which included a helipad, was opened on Marco Island.
In January 1990, North Collier Hospital (the North Naples campus) opened with 50 beds at its location on Immokalee Road in North Naples. The healthcare system, as well as the local population, continued to grow during this decade.
NCH was the only hospital in Collier County until 2001.
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The four-story, 156,000-square-foot center will offer advanced care for families and be housed on the NCH North Hospital campus.
In February 2007, the system expanded once again with the opening of the $64 million Jay & Patty Baker Patient Care Tower at the North Naples hospital.
In 2020, NCH purchased a 186,000 square foot office building on Immokalee Road to relocate some of its administrative support and non-clinical functions which it expects to complete in spring of 2021.
NCH also started a $35 million renovation and expansion of its Baker Hospital emergency room with a two-story, 19,000 square foot addition to expand its emergency room capacity to 47,000 square feet, with expected completion in February 2022.
In 2023, a rebrand changed what NCH stands for, becoming Naples Comprehensive Health.
Information gathered from the Naples Daily News archives, Wikipedia, Collier100.org and Collier County Museum archives.
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