Before matriculating, incoming frosh must get hepatitis vaccination

It used to be that incoming students only had to worry about tequila shots and the occasional gun shot. But next year's freshman class now has another kind of shot to be scared of -- vaccination shots. Starting in September, hepatitis B is going to be added to the University's Pre-matriculation Immunization Requirement, according to Director of Student Health Services MarJeanne Collins. She added that the University is the first large university in the nation to require the hepatitis B shot. "At this moment I only know of one [other school] that [requires the shot] -- Springfield College did it in September of 1994," Collins said. "We are definitely in the forefront." Other institutions are either thinking about or in the process of implementing such a policy, she said. The PIR, which was initiated in 1984, already requires students to be vaccinated against measles, mumps and rubella. Entering freshmen will be informed of this requirement in the admission packet that is sent to them this spring, Collins said. They will not be able to register for classes until they have at least two out of the three required doses of this vaccine, she added. They can get the third shot at student health. Collins, who also serves as chairman of the American College Health Association's Vaccine Preventable Diseases Task Force, said Student Health decided to require this additional vaccination "because it is the right thing to do." She added that although the shots are relatively expensive, "it is much cheaper than it used to be." "The entering college student can now get [immunized] at a pretty reasonable price of about $10 a dose," she said. Immunization Coordinator at Student Health Vernell Edwards said this addition is important "because it is becoming more and more of an issue on college campuses across the country." There are approximately 300,000 new cases of hepatitis B a year in this country and teenagers are at high risk because the disease is transmitted through bodily fluids such as blood and semen, she added. "They are in the risk group for hepatitis B by virtue of age," Collins said. "Almost everyone will become sexually active during those years." She added that it is necessary to require this because college students do not usually visit their doctors more than once a year and are not on an immunization schedule. Edwards said the University holds one of the strictest PIRs in the country, due in large part to Collins' efforts. Although only the freshman class will be required to have these shots, the vaccine will be recommended for all other students. Edwards said he is excited to see how the entire University population will respond to this request. "A lot of students did have the shots last year even though it wasn't a requirement," he said.