Vaccine rates down during pandemic

In your Family Healthcast, the number of regularly scheduled vaccinations have dropped during the pandemic.

But Nebraska's top doctor says get them done, even if they're late.

Last year, Nebraska ranked 5th in the nation for childhood vaccinations. But because of COVID-19, like the rest of the country, that number is falling.

Between January and April of this year, vaccines for children under two are down almost 10%. For kids between two and seven, they're down 32%. Between the ages of eight and 17, they're down by more than a third.

Nebraska director of public health Dr. Gary Anthone admits telehealth has been part of the problem.

"A lot of in person visits are cut down," said Anthone. "When i saw that telehealth visit, I realized how important it was, how efficient it was, how great it was. But it's hard to give a vaccination over the telephone or video monitor."

If you are not financially able to cover the costs of vaccinations, you can go through Department of Health and Human Service's Vaccines for Children program..