14 states make meningitis vaccine mandatory in college students

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" 14 States Mandate Meningitis Protection for College Students "

USA Today (www.usatoday.com) (08/27/02) P. 7D; Manning, Anita

Since 2000, 14 states have passed laws intended to protect

college students against bacterial meningitis, with Connecticut

having the strictest version--it requires proof of vaccination

before allowing students to move into college dormitories, and

the only exemptions it permits are medical or religious.

land, Florida, Pennsylvania, and Virginia require the

meningitis vaccine, but they let students opt out by signing a

waiver, while other states require that students be informed both

about the disease and the availability of the vaccine. Studies

show that college students, and particularly first-year students

living in dorms, are as much as six times at risk for the

infection as others in their age group. The infection kills up

to 13 percent of cases and causes severe impairments in 10

percent of those who survive. Some college health administrators

are trying to make students aware of vaccinations even in the

absence of laws requiring it. National Meningitis Foundation

director Mike Kepferle is asking states to make meningitis

vaccine information available to parents beginning when their

children are in high school.