ELKINS — Randolph-Elkins Health Department officials are reminding parents that vaccinations are still required for children planning to attend school in Randolph County this upcoming school year.

Children entering public school or a state-regulated child care center for the first time in West Virginia must be immunized to prevent chickenpox, hepatitis B, measles, mumps, rubella, polio, meningitis, tetanus, diphtheria and Pertussis (whooping cough).

Randolph-Elkins Health Department infectious disease specialist Bonnie Woodrum told The Inter-Mountain Friday that the immunization law in West Virginia remains unchanged.

“The governor (Patrick Morrisey) made his own proclamation that there would be exceptions, but the law didn’t change,” Woodrum said. “It did not pass the Legislature, so the requirements for childhood vaccinations before entering school are still in place.”

School is set to begin in Randolph County Schools on Aug. 18, and the Randolph-Elkins Health Department is offering vaccinations free of charge for all students. Children entering the seventh grade must receive a boost dose of Tdap (which is for tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis) and a vaccination against meningococcal meningitis.

Before entering their senior year of high school, students must be evaluated for complete vaccination requirements and receive booster shots as needed.

“Students attending any public school or a state-regulated child care facility have to be vaccinated,” Woodrum said. “We have plenty of vaccines and there is always a rush for everyone to get them right before the start of school.

“People should try to get their children in to get it done right away so they don’t have to worry about it. They can just give us a call or come in and we can get it done at their convenience. There’s never a wait here like you sometimes find in the doctors’ offices. We get them in quick.”

Woodrum said, due to the long-time practice of children receiving vaccinations for school in West Virginia, the state is just one of five states with no measles cases confirmed during the recent outbreaks in the U.S.

“We don’t have any measles cases in West Virginia and it’s because of the vaccination immunization legislature activity that’s kept the requirements for school kids in place,” Woodrum said. “There are some people who can’t be vaccinated because of health reasons, but because the people around them are vaccinated, they are protected. It’s called herd immunity.”

A local medical office in Vienna, West Virginia closed on Wednesday due to a possible measles exposure, officials said. The clinic reopened Thursday morning.

For more information or to set up an appointment for vaccinations, call the Randolph-Elkins Health Department at 304-636-0396.