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Need another reason to be sure your child is up to date on vaccinations, including measles? It won't just keep them healthier (maybe even save their lives), it will keep them in school.
A Cleveland.com story focusing on Northeast Ohio noted nearly 1 in 8 Geauga County kindergarten students have an exemption for the measles, mumps and rubella vaccination requirements.
To keep them safer, then, they must be excluded from any affected school until 21 days after the onset of the last known measles case, according to the Ohio Department of Health. And, as Cleveland.com points out, measles cases are on the increase this year, as vaccines are once again being dangerously politicized.
While Ohio has bucked the federal effort to control the childhood vaccine schedule, still a growing number of parents are seeking exemptions at the same time others' resistance to vaccines has helped bump the number of cases to 69 so far in 2026, far outpacing the 45 cases for all of 2025.
According to the state health department, the majority of those cases are unvaccinated patients.
"It's unfortunate that these outbreaks have become more common in Ohio over the past few years, because this disease is preventable," ODH Director Dr. Bruce Vanderhoff said July 30. "This serves to emphasize the importance of being fully vaccinated. I strongly encourage you to protect yourselves and your children by getting vaccinated."
Surely knowing their children could be put at a disadvantage academically in addition to being exposed to health risks is enough to make parents and guardians do all they can to protect and help them. Don't let an unelected federal bureaucrat sway you. Don't tempt fate. Get your kids up to date on their vaccines and start the school year right.