N.J. May Require Preschool Flu Shots

The New Jersey Public Health Council was mulling over whether to approve a rule that would require the state’s preschoolers to receive flu vaccines.

The provision, scheduled for a vote Tuesday, would make New Jersey the first state to require any child entering day care or preschool to receive the vaccine, The New York Times reported.

The council was also considering a measure requiring preschoolers to receive pneumonia vaccines and a measure that would require the state’s sixth graders to receive shots guarding against meningitis and a booster against tetanus, pertussis and diphtheria.

New Jersey and other states require the flu vaccine to be administered to college students living in dormitories.

A spokesman for Fred Jacobs, the state’s health commissioner, told the Times the official will take the recommendation of the council under advisement before making a final decision on the new rules.