School of Medicine

LSU Health New Orleans Medical Advisors to N.O. Public Schools Join School Leaders in Historic Vaccination Requirement

Leslie Capo, Director of Information Services
 
LSU Health New Orleans School of Medicine's Dr. Benjamin Springgate, Professor of Medicine and Chief of Community and Population Medicine, and Dr. Ryan Pasternak, Professor of Pediatrics and Head of the Division of General Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, helped New Orleans Public Schools become the first in the nation to require COVID vaccinations. The requirement went into effect Monday, February 1, 2022.

New Orleans Public Schools approached Drs. Springgate and Pasternak during the spring of 2020, shortly after the pandemic was declared, about providing their medical expertise. The relationship became official in July 2020, and was extended in November 2020 when Dr. Springgate was named Chief Health Officer, and Dr. Pasternak began serving as Chief Medical Officer.

“Schools and parents are making the right choices to proceed with vaccinating our children against COVID-19,” notes Dr. Springgate. “Vaccinating all eligible children reduces the burden of illness and transmission, allows parents to work instead of staying home with quarantined students, and keeps schools open to in-person learning.”

The School System requested that vaccination against COVID-19 be added to the list of required vaccinations, and the Louisiana Department of Health approved the request. As with other mandated vaccinations, parents can file for an exemption for medical, religious or philosophical reasons.

“Vaccinating all eligible children ages 5 and up against COVID-19 will give us the best chance to keep our school children healthy and keep schools open to in-person learning,” adds Dr. Pasternak.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, children are as likely to be infected with COVID-19 as adults and can get very sick from COVID-19, having both short and long-term health complications from COVID-19. They can spread COVID-19 to others, including at home and school.

As of mid-October 2021, children ages 5 through 11 years have experienced more than 8,300 COVID-19 related hospitalizations and nearly 100 deaths from COVID-19. In fact, COVID-19 ranks as one of the top 10 causes of death for children ages 5 through 11 years. Children who get infected with COVID-19 can also develop serious complications like multisystem inflammatory syndrome (MIS-C)—a condition where different body parts become inflamed, including the heart, lungs, kidneys, brain, skin, eyes, or gastrointestinal organs. Since the pandemic began, more than 2,300 cases of MIS-C have been reported in children ages 5 through 11 years.

Said Superintendent Dr. Henderson Lewis in December when the City of New Orleans announced an expansion to its proof of vaccination requirement to include children 5 to 11 years old, “We trust the recommendations of our health officials, and this requirement will help us all do our part this holiday season to come even closer to returning to the normal rhythms of life and so that we can truly enjoy the upcoming Mardi Gras season, safe and healthy.”