Public health director warns of falling school vaccination rates as county detects measles cases

The county’s public health director told the Duchesne County Commission that prevention remains the department’s central mission and that recent data show declining school vaccination coverage and a local measles cluster.

"When we invest in prevention today, we save lives, reduce costs, and build a healthier more resilient community for tomorrow," the public health director said, summarizing the department’s annual synopsis and its emphasis on prevention programs.

The director said roughly 43% of the department’s revenue comes from federal grants and that wages and benefits account for about three‑quarters of expenditures. The presentation highlighted school‑based work: the department has historically passed a tobacco‑prevention program through to local partners and noted nearly $75,000 in scholarships last year for student advocates involved in those programs.

On vaccines, the director said kindergarten and seventh‑grade coverage has declined since 2015, when about 93% of students were up to date. "Looking at the 2024–25 school year, that figure in the Tri‑County area runs in the range of 80 to 88 percent," the director said, adding that the health department’s board of health raised concerns about that downward trend.

The director also reported an ongoing state measles outbreak and said five confirmed cases have been identified in Ferreira; two of those children attended school while infectious. The director said the department held a drive‑through MMR clinic and administered doses to a mix of school‑age children and a number of adults who sought boosters. The director said the department will continue case investigations and outreach and may issue symptom alerts as contact investigations proceed.

Commissioners asked about data granularity and which age groups were showing up for vaccine clinics; the director said most attendees at the recent clinic were school‑age children but that some adults sought boosters or record checks. The director said the department tracks percent vaccinated and parent‑requested exemptions through school reporting systems, but does not collect individual vaccination records for clinic attendees.

The presentation closed with an offer to share the board’s final annual report and underlying data with commissioners and to provide a link and printed copy for reference.

The commission did not take formal action on the report; staff said the final annual report would be posted on the department website and circulated to commissioners for reference.