Back to School Checklist: Preventive Care Measures
9 Minutes
Team Curative
Aug 15, 2023
As quickly as it started, summer is over. While we’ll miss the sunshine and extra free time, the end of summer also means it’s time for the back-to-school rush. The start of a new school year can be exciting for students — new classmates, catching up with friends, buying cool school supplies, tryouts for school sports — but it can also be overwhelming for parents.
When it comes to taking care of your child’s health, immunizations, annual physicals, and preventive care services (such as health screenings), each has an important place on your back-to-school list, and we’re here to help you get started.
What immunizations does your child need for coverage in the classroom?
Immunizations play a crucial role in keeping kids happy and healthy throughout the school year and beyond. Ensuring your child is up-to-date on their immunizations at the start of the school year is the best way to start this new term.
School immunization requirements depend on various factors, primarily age and location. State laws govern immunization requirements for school children, which apply to public schools, private schools, and daycare facilities. Every state has immunization requirements for most school children, and understanding your state’s requirements helps maintain low rates of vaccine-preventable diseases. You can quickly and easily check your state’s school immunization requirements through the CDC website.
While they differ from state to state, commonly required immunizations for school children according to age include:
Pre-kindergarten (pre-K) students
Tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis
Polio
Measles, mumps, and rubella
Hepatitis B
Haemophilus influenza type b
Varicella (chicken pox)
Pneumococcal series
Kindergarten (in addition to all pre-K immunizations)
Tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis
Polio
Measles, mumps, and rubella
Varicella (chicken pox)
Sixth-graders (and all previous)
Tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis booster
Meningococcal
High school seniors (and all previous)
Two doses of Meningococcal vaccine, or one if the first dose is given after age 16
The CDC recommends additional immunizations for school children at certain ages (though your state may not require them):
COVID-19 boosters
COVID-19 is on the rise again this year, but you can get ahead of it. The CDC recommends that everyone six years and older get one updated Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, regardless of whether they received any original COVID-19 vaccines.
Human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine
The HPV vaccine protects against a key cause of cervical cancer and other cancers. The vaccine works best for children nine to 11 years old, but anytime before age 14 means your child is well protected. “If they get the vaccine before age 14, they only need two doses since they respond much better than older teenagers, who usually need three doses,” said Dr. Vikram Anand, a specialist in pediatric infectious diseases at Cedars-Sinai.
Flu shots
The flu vaccine is life-saving for children, and vaccinating your child ahead of a potentially early flu season makes all the difference. According to the CDC, children should get a flu vaccine every fall starting at six months old; some children aged six months through eight years may need two doses for the best protection.
Get a jump on annual physicals
Scheduling a physical exam and health screenings with a primary care provider, who certifies your child’s overall health, is a prerequisite for participation in many extracurricular school activities. Starting in kindergarten, many schools require kids to undergo a physical before the school year begins. Among other things, this is to check that each child is up-to-date with immunizations, and not at risk for preventable, contagious illness. Additionally, as your child gets older and signs up for any sport at school, they’ll typically need to get a physical with the appropriate health screenings — and sitting out practice or games because of a missed physical is no fun at all.
Amid the back-to-school rush, an annual physical is probably the last thing on your mind. But you can get a jump on your child’s requirements quickly with Curative. We know how important an annual physical is to overall health and well-being. Simply contact your Care Navigator, who will help you sort everything out, so you can get back to preparing for the school year ahead.
Preventive measures and health screenings go the extra mile
The only thing worse than being sick yourself? … is if your child issick. Think of preventive care services, such as routine health screenings and immunizations, as tools in your super-parent toolbox that can keep potential health problems under control, before they become serious.
Here are a few preventive care measures to keep your child from feeling under the weather:
Keep it clean
The start of the new school year is…well, full of germs. Experts expect this respiratory virus season to be similar to last year’s wave of COVID-19, flu, and RSV infections. Sending your child to school with a hand sanitizer that is 60 percent alcohol or more, tissues, and reusable water bottles and lunch boxes protects against germs throughout the day. While at home, disinfecting supplies, checking for lice, and washing hands before eating minimizes the risk of illness and can help stop kids from bringing home the inevitable illnesses that spread around schools.
Virtual house calls
Doctor’s appointments can be burdensome for some families. Organizing trips to and from the doctor’s office while also pulling your child out of school isn’t ideal. But as a Curative member, you can schedule a virtual visit with a trusted doctor 24/7, 365, so your child can get the care they need from the comfort of home.
Prioritize mental health
It’s no secret that kids across the nation are struggling with their mental health. According to a nationwide 2023 study, 87 percent of Gen Z youth report struggling with their depression, stress and anxiety. We believe that mental well-being is foundational to your child’s overall health. Just as your child’s physical health needs a check-up, so does their mental health. Whether you’ve spotted signs of mental strain in your child or simply want to schedule a mental health screening or check-in, Curative has you covered.
Screen time vs. sleep
Just like the rest of us, kids spend a lot of time in front of screens and electronic devices. But this overload of screen time for children interferes with everything, including sleep. Ensuring your child gets adequate rest is vital to their well-being, and limiting screen time can make a difference. Children aged two or younger should have no screen time, and children aged two years or older should have one to two hours a day of screen time.
Breathe easy with Curative
Conditions such as allergies and asthma can be scary, but are also manageable with the right preparation. Curative ensures you can access the specialized care or medication your child might need to manage triggers and prevent asthma attacks. Every step of the way, your Care Navigator is happy to help.
Taking care of your child’s health as they begin a new school year doesn’t have to be complicated. Your health plan makes checking off immunizations, annual physicals, and preventive care services easy, and we’re ready to help you kick off the school year with health and wellness top of mind.
About Curative
Curative wants people to love using their health benefits. Our health plan actually delivers better health through affordability, engagement, and simplicity.
No copays. No deductibles. No...really. Curative is changing the way we view health insurance.*
**In order to qualify, members must complete a Baseline Visit within the first 120 days of the plan effective date.
Discover how Curative’s preventive care coverage helps your child gear up for the 2023/24 school year by visiting us here.
*See all disclaimers here.
References:
Back-to-school health checklist. (2 Aug 2023). Rush. https://www.rush.edu/news/back-school-health-checklist
Requirements & laws. CDC. Last reviewed 15 Nov 2016. https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/imz-managers/laws/index.html
Requirements and exemptions. CDC. Last reviewed 12 Oct 2017. https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/imz-managers/coverage/schoolvaxview/requirements/index.html
Stay up to date with vaccines. CDC. Last updated 17 Jul 2023. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/stay-up-to-date.html
Here are the back-to-school vaccinations your kids need. (24 Aug 2022). Cedars-Sinai. https://www.cedars-sinai.org/blog/back-school-vaccinations-kids-need.html
Flu (influenza). CDC. Last reviewed 2 Aug 2019. https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/parents/diseases/flu.html
Screen time and children. MedlinePlus. Last updated 25 Apr 2023. https://medlineplus.gov/ency/patientinstructions/000355.htm#:~:text=Children%20under%20age%202%20should,do%20not%20improve%20their%20development
Rogers, L.S. (28 Jul 2023). What’s in store for the upcoming respiratory virus season? Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. https://publichealth.jhu.edu/2023/rsv-covid-19-and-flu-outlook-for-2023-2024
New poll: mental health challenges prevalent among Gen Z youth; more than three in four have discussed their struggles with others. (3 Aug 2023). Blue Shield of California. https://news.blueshieldca.com/2023/08/03/new-poll-mental-health-challenges-prevalent-among-gen-z-youth-more-than-three-in-four-have-discussed-their-struggles-with-others
Ruder, D.B. (19 June 2019). Screen time and the brain. Harvard Medical School. https://hms.harvard.edu/news/screen-time-brain
