Natomas Unified will offer a free Tdap shot clinic to provide incoming seventh-graders with the state-required whooping cough booster vaccine before the start of the new school year.
The clinic will be held Aug. 7 at the NUSD Ed Center, 1901 Arena Blvd., from 8-10 a.m. and from 4-6 p.m.
State law requires all incoming seventh-graders, unless exempted, to obtain the whooping cough booster shot before starting the new school year, Aug. 13. The vaccine is known as Tdap because it protects against tetanus and diphtheria in addition to pertussis, known as whooping cough.
Whooping cough is a contagious disease that can cause violent coughing fits that make breathing difficult. Tetanus causes a severe and painful tightening of the muscles, including the jaw. Diphtheria is a throat infection with symptoms ranging from breathing problems to heart failure.
Tdap immunization can help protect homes, schools and communities from an outbreak of whooping cough.
Parents who seek an exemption to California’s Tdap requirement should contact the secretary of their child’s school for a form, which must be filled out by a pediatrician, then returned to the school.
If you have questions, call Tracy Cobb, of NUSD’s Special Education and Student Services Department, at 567-5434.
