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In 2017, eight Michigan counties had less than 70% of their children 1.5 to 3 years old caught up on their recommended vaccine series.
Those communities were split between part of the Thumb, a small area of the northern Lower Peninsula, and in the Upper Peninsula.
As of this summer, the number of counties that fell below that threshold expanded to 51, including 11 counties below 60% vaccinated. Those counties are spread across all regions.
“We had really eliminated most of the low vaccination counties,” said Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian, the state’s chief medical executive, as she compared immunization trends in recent years.
“By 2023, it appears to be an almost statewide issue. This means there are some children in the state who are more vulnerable than others because of the communities in which they live and because of low vaccination pockets.”
The lowest county rates belong to Keweenaw (36.8%), Oscoda (38.2%), Mackinac (54.2%), and Houghton (55.4%) in Northern Michigan.
On the other end, the highest rates belong to Bay (79.2%), Alpena (78.5%), Midland (77.6%), Delta (77.4%), Kent (76.9%), and Crawford (76.9%), Clinton (76.6%), and Ottawa (76.5%).
Below is a map illustrating each county’s vaccination rates for children 19 months to 35 months old. Select a county to see how those rates have evolved since 2019.
Children are recommended to get a series of vaccinations between 19 months and 3 years, including DTaP (diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis), polio, MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella), Hib (Haemophilus influenza), Hepatitis B, Varicella, and PCV (pneumococcal conjugate).
Some diseases that have been almost completely eliminated from the U.S., like measles in 2000, have found their way back due to lowered vaccine rates.
This year, Michigan has already identified seven cases of measles. Nationally, the count is up to 188 cases, of which 49% have required hospitalization.
Youth vaccinations dipped during and immediately after the COVID-19 pandemic. After four years of declining rates, Michigan appears to have rebounded.
As of July, more than 70% of children 19 months to 3 years old were up to date on recommended vaccines. It is the highest rate for the age group since before the coronavirus pandemic, and ends four consecutive years of decline.
Still, health officials say rates are too low and open the door for dangerous but preventable diseases to spread.
For more information on vaccinations, visit Michigan’s webpage on immunization information, or visit ivaccinate.org, a resource founded by Veronica Valentine McNally, who advocates for vaccination after her daughter died of pertussis in 2012.