Measles case prompts temporary exclusion at New Albany Early Learning Center; district reports high MMR coverage

Superintendent Michael Sawyers told the New Albany-Plain Local Board of Education on Oct. 6 that a confirmed measles case involving a student at the New Albany Early Learning Center prompted Franklin County Public Health and the Ohio Department of Health to direct the district to exclude people who are not fully vaccinated against measles.

The exclusion order applies only to the Early Learning Center, Sawyers said. He said fully vaccinated kindergarten students may return Oct. 7 and the district planned to reopen the Early Learning Center for fully vaccinated preschool students beginning Monday, Oct. 13. A voluntary mobile clinic held at the Early Learning Center increased vaccination rates, Sawyers said.

The superintendent said the district has verified MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) status for most students and staff and that, as of the update, "98.7 percent of all students attending the New Albany Plain Local School District are fully vaccinated for the MMR." He also said, "80 percent of our preschool students are now fully vaccinated for the MMR" and that "92.5 percent of our kindergarten students are now fully vaccinated" following the clinic.

Sawyers said 65 preschool or kindergarten students remained without documentation of two MMR doses and will be excluded beginning Oct. 7. He noted that children who have received only one dose but obtain the second dose become immediately eligible to return once documentation is provided. Some children are too young to receive a second dose yet; those age-based exclusions were described by the superintendent as continuing until the health department's required observation periods conclude.

Sawyers described challenges verifying adult vaccination records and said some staff are pursuing titer testing or obtaining new vaccinations after failing to locate their childhood documentation. He said the district hosted a voluntary staff clinic and encouraged employees to consult their primary care providers about vaccination if records cannot be found. He thanked school nurses, administrators and Franklin County Public Health for their work over the weekend to contact families and comply with the health department's direction.

Board policy 8450 (control of casual contact communicable diseases) and board policy 5320 (immunization) were cited by the superintendent as mirroring Ohio law on required school immunizations. Sawyers reviewed the state-required list of vaccines (DTaP, polio, MMR, hepatitis B, varicella, MCV4 and others) and said Ohio law allows nonmedical (conscience/religious) and medical exemptions when families submit the required written documentation.

District officials said they will provide home learning opportunities for excluded students during the exclusion period and are working with families on next steps. Franklin County Public Health enforces quarantine orders; the district enforces exclusion from school buildings under the health department's direction.

Sawyers urged families unable to find vaccination records to contact their pediatrician or county health department and described the mobile clinic as successful in increasing documented coverage. The district said it will continue to verify staff vaccine status in the affected building.