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Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter urges Utah Senate to boost early childhood immunizations
Summary
Rosalynn Carter and Betty Bumpers addressed the Senate about Every Child By Two, highlighting national and Utah immunization shortfalls among two‑year‑olds and urging parental education, better insurance coverage for vaccines, and a child registration/tracking system.
Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, joined by Betty Bumpers, addressed the Utah Senate during a Committee of the Whole session to promote the Every Child By Two immunization initiative. Carter said recent epidemics exposed low immunization rates among very young children — she cited national two‑year‑old immunization levels under 50 percent and reported Utah’s two‑year‑old rate at about 42 percent — and urged senators to consider policies that increase early immunization.
Carter described practical steps: educating parents about the importance of early vaccination rather than relying solely on school‑entry requirements; encouraging insurance companies to cover immunizations; strengthening enforcement at day‑care and pre‑school entry; and establishing a birth registration and tracking system to make it easier to locate and immunize children who move between counties.
Senators and attendees responded positively to the presentation; the former first lady said successful models exist from state programs and the White House experience and encouraged Utah lawmakers to coordinate state health agencies, clinics and community organizations to improve childhood immunization coverage.
Next steps mentioned included exploring insurance mandates to cover vaccines, improving enforcement for day‑care immunization standards, and developing cross‑county registration systems to track early childhood vaccinations.
