Wisconsin’s rate for vaccinating 5- and 6-year-olds against measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) has continued to slide since the COVID-19 pandemic began, with 74.1% of such children receiving two doses of the shot in 2024 — down from 79.3% in 2019. 

Nearly every Wisconsin county last year vaccinated a lower share of kindergarten-aged children for MMR than before the pandemic. Menominee County, home to the Menominee Indian tribe of Wisconsin, was the lone exception, according to Wisconsin Department of Health Services data. 

After dipping from nearly 80.7% in 2019 to as low as 74.7% during the height of the pandemic, Menominee County’s MMR vaccination rate for kindergartners grew to nearly 83.6% in 2024, the state’s highest rate. 

That success was due to local health officials “being proactive” and conducting outreach that included “looking up kids that were behind, reaching out to parents and encouraging them to bring them in,” said Faye Dodge, director of community health nursing services at the Menominee Tribal Clinic.

Vaccination rates matter because measles is highly contagious and potentially dangerous.

Before the 1960s, hundreds of thousands of Americans faced measles infections each year. The advent of vaccination eliminated the disease in the United States by 2000. But outbreaks have returned to some U.S. communities as trust in vaccines wanes in many communities.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control though June 19 confirmed more than 1,200 measles cases this year in 36 states, including every state bordering Wisconsin. About 12% of cases sent patients to the hospital. Three people have died.  

Wisconsin, which has some of the nation’s lowest vaccination rates for children, has been lucky to have dodged cases so far, said Margaret Hennessy, a pediatrician and member of the Wisconsin Council on Immunization Practices.

Wisconsin’s risk of outbreaks will grow as families with children travel over the summer.

“They’re going to be traveling all over the country,” Hennessy said. “Realistically, it’s likely a matter of time for somebody who’s not vaccinated or doesn’t have immunity to get the disease.”

Wisconsin Watch analyzed statewide vaccination data for 5- and 6-year-olds in the state, conducted other research and spoke to public health officials.

Here are some takeaways:

• The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted local vaccination programs, leaving children behind in their vaccination schedules. Understaffed, under-resourced counties have struggled to catch up. 
• Creating relationships with trusted community members and reducing access barriers is the most effective way to inoculate more children against contagious diseases like measles, public health officials say. 
• No Wisconsin county comes close to reaching the vaccination rate of 95% that is considered the benchmark for herd immunity protection. That was true in 2024 and before the pandemic. 
• Just three counties — Manitowoc, Marathon and Kewaunee — fully vaccinated at least 80% of kindergarten-aged children in every year from 2019 to 2024. 
• While vaccination rates are lagging from pre-pandemic levels in most counties, 28 of Wisconsin’s 72 counties reported vaccination gains between 2023 and 2024 — four more than the previous year. Still, the majority of counties saw declines.

Vaccination rates are plunging in Clark County, which consistently ranks lowest statewide for vaccinating 5- and 6-year-olds against measles. Just 42.9% of those children received both MMR doses in 2024, down from 57.9% in 2019. 

Brittany Mews, Clark County’s health officer and director, cites a range of challenges in her sprawling county. Those include distances between few clinics in communities with no public transportation, low levels of health insurance access and diverse populations who face language barriers — and may adhere to cultural norms that prioritize traditional remedies over Western medicine.

But the county has found some success in partners ranging from school districts and child care centers to faith communities, Mews said. The health department has asked schools to notify parents when their children need vaccines, for instance, and positive feedback prompted the scheduling of multiple vaccine clinics at the schools and community churches.

Community partnerships in familiar places make people feel more comfortable — particularly in the county’s diverse communities, including those with language and cultural differences. 

Clark County is also working to increase vaccine access by partnering with neighboring health departments to offer vaccination clinics six times a year at a church food pantry, creating a “one-stop-shop” system, Mews said.   

Forging personal connections can grow trust and spread accurate information at a time when disinformation is running rampant online, Hennessy said. Hearing about positive vaccination experiences from a parent, neighbor or other trusted source can hold more weight than information a physician shares. 

“It’s unfortunate that we all can’t be everywhere all the time to fill that,” Hennessy said.

Heather Feest, a Manitowoc County public health nurse manager, said patience and understanding of concerns are also key to increased vaccinations.

“We’re not trying to persuade one way or another, it’s giving that information and answering questions — and allowing them to get factual information and have a conversation without judging,” Feest said. “It’s harder now than what it used to be.”

DataWatch: Measles will likely arrive in Wisconsin. Here’s where vaccination rates are trending is a post from Wisconsin Watch, a non-profit investigative news site covering Wisconsin since 2009. Please consider making a contribution to support our journalism.

The percentage of Wisconsin schoolchildren not receiving state-mandated vaccinations because of their parents’ personal beliefs is four times higher than it was a generation ago.

That rise in personal conviction waivers has driven a decrease in all immunizations among Wisconsin children ahead of new measles outbreaks hitting the U.S. that are linked to three deaths.

Wisconsin’s measles vaccination rate among kindergartners was the third-lowest in the nation in the 2023-24 school year, behind Idaho and Alaska. (Montana didn’t report data.)

Here’s a look at how we got here.

Vaccine laws in all 50 states

Immunizations are so common that all 50 states have laws requiring them for schoolchildren. Wisconsin was among the first, in 1882.

In the 1950s, the child mortality rate was 4.35%, largely due to childhood diseases. That rate dropped to 0.77% by 2022, according to the nonpartisan Wisconsin Legislative Fiscal Bureau.

“Vaccines have brought about one of the largest improvements in public health in human history, making diseases that once caused widespread illness and many deaths, such as measles, mumps, and rubella, rare in the United States,” the agency reported.

For the 2024-25 school year, Wisconsin required seven immunizations (18 doses) for children to enter school. That included shots for measles (MMR), polio and hepatitis B. COVID-19 and influenza vaccines are not included.

Overall, the vast majority of Wisconsin students, 89.2%, met the minimum immunization requirements in the 2023–24 school year, according to the state’s latest annual report. 

That’s essentially unchanged from the previous two school years. 

But it’s down more than three percentage points from 92.3% in 2017-18.

For highly communicable diseases such as measles, a threshold above 95% is needed to protect most people through “herd immunity.”

More parents refusing to get kids vaccinated

Wisconsin had been a national leader in childhood immunizations. 

But increasingly, Wisconsin parents are opting out:

• For all childhood immunizations, vaccination rates statewide were lower in almost every quarter from 2020 through 2024, in comparison with the average rate in the three years before COVID-19.

• Wisconsin was one of the states with the largest drops in the measles vaccination rate for kindergartners between the 2022-23 and 2023-24 school years, and no county had an MMR vaccination rate above 85%, The Economist reported.

• By a different measure, the measles vaccination rate for 2-year-olds in 2024 was as low as 44% in Vernon County and under 70% in 14 other counties.

On exemptions, Wisconsin differs from most states

All states have exemptions that allow parents not to have their children vaccinated. Medical and religious reasons are the most common. 

In Wisconsin, there’s also a third waiver.

Wisconsin regulations say the Wisconsin Department of Health Services shall provide a waiver for health reasons if a physician certifies that an immunization “is or may be harmful to the health of a student”; or, if the parent of a minor student, or an adult student, submits a signed statement that “declares an objection to immunization on religious or personal conviction grounds.”

That philosophical exemption, based on personal beliefs, exists only in 15 states, including Wisconsin, Michigan and Minnesota.   

“The bottom line is: If you don’t want your child vaccinated, you don’t have to,” said Kia Kjensrud, interim director of Immunize Wisconsin, which supports vaccination organizations.

In 2023-24, 6.1% of Wisconsin students used a waiver. 

That includes 5.2% who had a personal conviction waiver — a rate more than four times higher than the 1.2% in 1997-98.

Waiver use has increased because the number of required vaccines and the legal protections given to vaccine manufacturers have “fueled skepticism about vaccine safety and testing rigor,” Wisconsin United for Freedom said in an email. The De Pere-based group works to protect “rights to medical freedom” and promotes vaccine skepticism. 

Rep. Lisa Subeck, D-Madison, one of the lawmakers who introduced legislation in 2023 to repeal the personal conviction waiver, said she believes some parents have genuine convictions against vaccinations. But “many of the folks who are choosing this exemption are doing it because of misinformation” claiming that vaccines are dangerous, she said.

Groups that registered to lobby in favor of Subeck’s bill included associations of physicians, nurses and local health departments. Wisconsin Family Action, which works to advance Judeo-Christian values, opposed it. The bill did not pass.

Kjensrud also blamed Wisconsin’s declining immunization rates on misinformation. But she said that rather than legislation, her group wants to improve “messaging the safety, efficacy and lifesaving importance of vaccines, and increasing vaccination rates however we can.” 

Bipartisan support for personal exemption

Wisconsin’s modern student immunization law was passed in 1975 with only the medical and religious waivers. In 1980, the Legislature added the personal conviction waiver. 

The waiver was included in a broader amendment proposed by 10 Democratic members and 11 Republican members of the Assembly.

The lead sponsor was the late Richard Flintrop, who represented Oshkosh and was known as a child welfare advocate. He also was a former staff member to maverick Democratic U.S. Sen. William Proxmire.

Wisconsin United For Freedom said the recent measles outbreaks “raise valid concerns,” but that “the focus should be on balanced public health strategies that prioritize sanitation, nutrition, and informed choice alongside vaccination, rather than relying solely on mandates.”

Wisconsin Watch wants to hear your perspective on vaccinations. Do you have questions about measles, its vaccine or how to keep your family safe? Or do you have perspectives to share about prevention efforts in your community?

If so, fill out this brief form. Your submissions will shape the direction of our reporting and will not be shared publicly.

Wisconsin, once a leader in childhood vaccinations, now a leader in vaccine skepticism is a post from Wisconsin Watch, a non-profit investigative news site covering Wisconsin since 2009. Please consider making a contribution to support our journalism.

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. testifies during his Senate Finance Committee confirmation hearing at the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Jan. 29, 2025 in Washington, D.C.. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. changed the federal government’s recommendation for the coronavirus vaccine on Tuesday, saying healthy children and healthy pregnant people no longer need to get it.

Kennedy, a longtime vaccine skeptic who had to broker several deals with Republican senators to secure confirmation, didn’t explain why he was making the change in a brief video.

“I couldn’t be more pleased to announce that as of today the COVID vaccine for healthy children and healthy pregnant women has been removed from the CDC recommended immunization schedule,” Kennedy said. “Last year the Biden administration urged healthy children to get yet another COVID shot despite the lack of any clinical data to support the repeat booster strategy in children.”

National Institutes of Health Director Jay Bhattacharya and Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Martin A. Makary both spoke briefly during the social media video to say they supported the decision. But neither pointed to new studies regarding COVID-19 boosters or any evidence of safety issues.

“It’s common sense and it’s good science,” Bhattacharya said.

Kennedy made several promises to Louisiana Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy — chairman of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee — in order to secure Cassidy’s vote so that Kennedy could be confirmed as HHS secretary.

Among those was that Kennedy would “maintain the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advisory committee on immunization practices recommendations without changes.”

Cassidy’s office did not respond to a request for comment.

‘Extremely disappointed’

Public health organizations raised concerns about the change in policy. 

Dr. Steven J. Fleischman, president of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, said the organization was “concerned about and extremely disappointed by the announcement that HHS will no longer recommend COVID vaccination during pregnancy.”

“As ob-gyns who treat patients every day, we have seen firsthand how dangerous COVID infection can be during pregnancy and for newborns who depend on maternal antibodies from the vaccine for protection,” Fleischman wrote. “We also understand that despite the change in recommendations from HHS, the science has not changed.

“It is very clear that COVID infection during pregnancy can be catastrophic and lead to major disability, and it can cause devastating consequences for families. The COVID vaccine is safe during pregnancy, and vaccination can protect our patients and their infants.”

Dr. Sean O’Leary, chair of the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Infectious Diseases, wrote in a statement HHS’ “decision bypasses a long-established, evidence-based process used to ensure vaccine safety and ignores the expertise of independent medical experts, including members of CDC committees who are examining the evidence regarding the vaccine to make recommendations for the fall.” 

“By removing the recommendation, the decision could strip families of choice,” O’Leary wrote. “Those who want to vaccinate may no longer be able to, as the implications for insurance coverage remain unclear. It’s also unclear whether health care workers would be eligible to be vaccinated.”

“What is clear is that pregnant women, infants and young children are at higher risk of hospitalization from COVID, and the safety of the COVID vaccine has been widely demonstrated.”

Former surgeon general under Trump critical

Dr. Jerome Adams, the surgeon general during Trump’s first administration, wrote in a detailed social media post that Kennedy’s announcement “raises significant concerns, as it overlooks both available evidence, and the complexities of public health.”

“Shifting from vaccine mandates to outright prohibitions does not reflect medical freedom; it represents a different form of government intervention, one that restricts individual choice and access to evidence-based care,” Adams wrote. “A balanced approach would prioritize informed decision-making, ensuring that vaccines remain available to those who need them while respecting personal autonomy.

“Hoping as this policy change is implemented, anyone who is truly high risk can still easily get a vaccine, and that we don’t let politics trump science, health, and previous proclamations about ‘personal choice.’”

American Public Health Association Executive Director Dr. Georges C Benjamin wrote in a statement that “(v)accines offer the best protection from severe symptoms and death associated with the COVID-19 virus for all populations.

“This decision by Secretary Kennedy puts kids, pregnant moms and their babies at risk of unnecessary suffering that is preventable. Lots of questions remain as to how HHS leadership plans to implement this poorly thought out announcement that is not supported by the scientific evidence and our national experience.”

An HHS press secretary wrote in an email to States Newsroom that “as part of the Trump administration’s commitment to common sense, the COVID-19 vaccine will be removed from the CDC’s recommended immunization schedule.”

“With the COVID-19 pandemic behind us, it is time to move forward,” the spokesperson wrote. “HHS and the CDC remain committed to gold standard science and to ensuring the health and well-being of all Americans—especially our nation’s children—using common sense.”

Last week, our newsroom was intrigued by data in this Economist article showing that Wisconsin stands out nationally when it comes to its low vaccination rates for measles. It prompted a discussion about the many reasons for vaccine hesitancy and the complex challenges of maintaining trust in public health. 

One thing is clear: Measles is a very infectious disease, and it’s spreading nationwide. 

As of May 15 officials had confirmed 1,024 measles cases — including more than 100 hospitalizations — across 31 states, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control. 

Officials in 2025 have tracked almost as many measles outbreaks (defined as three or more related cases) as they did in all of 2024. Three deaths this year have been linked to measles. They included two unvaccinated school-aged children in Texas and an unvaccinated adult in New Mexico. 

The outbreaks come as vaccination rates decline nationwide, particularly in Wisconsin. The measles, mumps and rubella vaccine rate for Wisconsin kindergartners has plunged since 2019. But even before the COVID-19 pandemic, no county in Wisconsin had more than a 90% vaccination rate, which is traditionally associated with “herd immunity.” 

Wisconsin, The Economist article noted, “is among the most permissive states for vaccine exceptions in schools, allowing opt-out for personal-conviction reasons (along with medical and religious exemptions, which most states have); parents only have to submit a written note.”

Still, Wisconsin has yet to see a measles outbreak this year. As we consider how to report on this issue, let us know what you think. 

Do you have questions about measles, its vaccine or how to keep your family safe? Or do you have perspectives to share about prevention efforts in your community? 

If so, fill out this brief form. Your submissions will shape the direction of our reporting and will not be shared publicly. 

Wisconsin Watch is a nonprofit, nonpartisan newsroom. Subscribe to our newsletters for original stories and our Friday news roundup.

Help Wisconsin Watch report on measles prevention is a post from Wisconsin Watch, a non-profit investigative news site covering Wisconsin since 2009. Please consider making a contribution to support our journalism.

Examiner staff members Baylor Spears, Henry Redman, Erik Gunn, Ruth Conniff and Criminal Justice Fellow Andrew Kennard with Milwaukee Press Club awards on May 9, 2025 | Wisconsin Examiner photo

Wisconsin Examiner staff members were recognized for investigative reporting, public service reporting, explanatory reporting, and in several feature-writing categories in the Milwaukee Press Club annual Excellence in Journalism contest for work published in 2024.

Henry Redman received the Bronze award for online investigative reporting for a series of stories that uncovered the influence of an out-of-state right-wing pro-development group on land use planning in Oneida County.

Editor Ruth Conniff was recognized in the public service reporting category for a special report on human trafficking in Wisconsin agriculture. For the third year in a row, Conniff also received an award for the best online column for a selection of her work.

Criminal Justice Project Fellow Andrew Kennard received a bronze award for explanatory reporting online for a story about problems with access to telephone communication for incarcerated people in Wisconsin prisons.

Baylor Spears was honored with a bronze award for hard news feature writing for her story on how Democratic Party candidates were campaigning in parts of the state that they have been shut out from in the past by gerrymandering. 

Deputy Editor Erik Gunn was the recipient of a silver award for feature writing for his story on a project in La Crosse by college students and neighborhood activists to eliminate the use of mulched rubber as a playground surface.

Gunn also received a bronze award for personal profile writing for his story on a mother who has campaigned for years to have meningitis vaccines required in Wisconsin after her son died of the illness in college.

Wisconsin Watch partners with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. Read our methodology to learn how we check claims.

No.

The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 2025 general recommendations are that children receive about 19 vaccinations and other immunizations.

Those include vaccines against polio, measles, mumps, rubella, hepatitis, tetanus and diphtheria. The range is from one to five doses from birth through age 18.

Total doses could exceed 70. That’s mainly from annual recommended doses of the COVID-19 and influenza vaccines.

Wisconsin requires seven immunizations (19 doses) for schoolchildren. COVID-19 and influenza vaccines are not included.

Before vaccines, many children died from diseases such as measles and pertussis (whooping cough), according to the Wisconsin Department of Health Services. 

The viruses and bacteria that cause these diseases still exist, and some are deadly, the department says.

Attorney Mary Holland, head of Children’s Health Defense, an organization founded by U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr. that questions vaccines, said May 1 on Wisconsin radio the federal recommendation is for “at least 77 vaccines.”

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.

Sources

• U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Preventiuon: Recommended Child and Adolescent Immunization Schedule for ages 18 years or younger
• Wisconsin Department of Health Services: Summary of Changes to Wisconsin 2024-2025 School Immunization Requirements for Local Health Departments, Schools, and Health Care Providers
• Wisconsin Department of Health Services: Immunizations: Childhood and Adolescent Vaccine Information
• Children's Health Defense: Leadership Team
• Children's Health Defense: Why Are So Many Questioning Vaccines?
• Children's Health Defense: The Exploding Vaccine Schedule

Does the federal government recommend more than 70 vaccines for children? is a post from Wisconsin Watch, a non-profit investigative news site covering Wisconsin since 2009. Please consider making a contribution to support our journalism.