John Leddy was all set to send his 2-year-old daughter Vanessa to the YWCA Family Cooperative Preschool in Santa Monica recently when he and his wife decided at the last minute to ask about its measles vaccination rate.
They went onto the state’s website and were alarmed to learn that as of last fall, only 51% of the preschool’s children were vaccinated against the measles. The Venice family is now looking for a different day-care center with a higher immunization rate.
“I had to wonder: How many families there who do vaccinate their children were aware of this?” he said.
A Times analysis of preschool immunization showed that private child-care centers like the YWCA in Santa Monica had lower measles vaccination rates than public facilities. Mirroring the situation at kindergartens, the analysis found that preschools in affluent areas like the Westside, southern Orange County and the South Bay tended to have lower vaccination rates.
Click here to read the full story at LATimes.com.