As kids head back to school and families adjust to new fall schedules, ensuring your family is up to date on recommended vaccines should be a top priority. Vaccines are the most effective public health tools against the spread of communicable diseases.

Among U.S. children born between 1994 and 2023 — an estimated 117 million — vaccinations prevented 32 million hospitalizations and 1.1 million deaths. Readily available and accessible vaccines allowed Americans to enjoy daily activities with the knowledge that they were safe from the spread of preventable diseases like measles and whooping cough.

However, as a father and physician, I am deeply concerned about the recent decline in the U.S. vaccination rate. Between 2010 and 2020, the number of vaccinated kindergartners across the country held steady at 95%. Due in part to both COVID-19 pandemic-related missed health checkups and an increase in vaccine hesitancy during the crisis, vaccination rates dropped to 93% between 2022 and 2023 and have yet to recover to pre-pandemic rates.

An increase in vaccine exemptions — medical, religious and/or personal beliefs — is partly responsible for the decline in the vaccination rate. Nearly 3% of North Carolina kindergartners entered school with a vaccine exemption in 2024.

When vaccine rates drop, our “herd immunity” — the number of community residents who are immune to outbreaks either due to vaccination or previous infection — declines and outbreaks of communicable illnesses become far more common. Between 2021 and 2025, the number of flu vaccinations distributed in the U.S. decreased by 30 million. During the 2024-25 respiratory virus season, more than 500 North Carolinians died from the flu, the highest number of statewide flu deaths since broad reporting began in 2009. With 574 cases reported, North Carolina also experienced a dramatic surge in whooping cough cases in 2024, over six times the number in 2023.

Across the U.S. so far in 2025, public health officials have reported over 1,200 measles cases. Over 90 percent of these cases were preventable with vaccination.

In North Carolina, the decline in vaccination is especially concerning in rural communities, where existing disparities can exacerbate the negative impact of communicable diseases. Rural residents are more likely to be uninsured, have access to fewer doctors and must travel farther for immediate medical care than urban residents in our state. These conditions make it hard for rural North Carolinians to receive the care that they need. In the face of such systemic barriers to care, vaccinations are a safe option for patients of all ages, races and backgrounds, especially residents in rural areas.

As a North Carolina primary care physician, I am all too familiar with the speed with which infectious diseases can spread across a community and the devastating impact they can leave behind, particularly among children, older adults and other vulnerable populations. Given such risks, we should all be concerned about the persistent misinformation about the efficacy and safety of vaccines.

Vaccines are rigorously tested before they reach the market and scientific researchers consistently monitor vaccines for safety concerns. Moreover, as science evolves, researchers can develop vaccines and therapies more quickly to respond to both new and existing health challenges. And they do so without compromising safety, efficacy or the rigorous testing required to protect communities. These advances mean that we are better equipped to prevent outbreaks, limit the spread of disease and ensure that future generations grow up healthier and more resilient.

The beginning of the school year is a great time to stop the spread of preventable disease, and I urge local communities to act. Vaccinations must be updated every few years and it is important to consult your primary care provider to confirm your vaccination record is up to date.

Do not wait! Protect yourself and your loved ones from dangerous communicable diseases by getting vaccinated.

Source cited: The Reflector. Dr. Cedric M. Bright is a North Carolina native, physician and patient advocate. He has spent over 30 years in academic medicine teaching at institutions such as Brown University, Duke, UNC and ECU. Presently, he is a primary care physician at the Agape Metropolitan Health Services in Washington, N.C.