Last school year, El Paso County kindergarteners had the highest vaccination rates among those in the 10 most populated Texas counties, according to an annual report by the state health department.
As the United States faces the worst measles outbreak in more than a quarter century, vaccine exemption rates ticked up for Texas kindergarteners and their immunization coverage fell below 95% in all six school-required vaccines.
Measles, a once-eliminated disease, has made a resurgence in recent years because of falling immunization rates. More than 95% of a community needs to be fully vaccinated against measles to achieve herd immunity.
El Paso bucked the state trend with both kindergarten and seventh-grade vaccination rates above 97% for all childhood vaccines.
In comparison, Dallas reported kindergarten vaccination rates barely above 90% for measles and polio, and just above 89% for pertussis, also known as whooping cough. Immunization coverage improved for Dallas seventh graders, though measles vaccination remained below the herd immunity threshold.
“I believe culture plays an important role in our community’s positive attitude toward vaccination, and that is reflected in the higher vaccination rates we see across the Borderland,” said Dr. Hector Ocaranza, El Paso city-county health authority.
Ocaranza said the trust El Pasoans have in healthcare providers combined with strong partnerships with public health organizations helped maintain confidence in childhood immunizations.
Texas requires six vaccinations for students entering kindergarten:
- Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria, and acellular pertussis) or Td (tetanus and diphtheria)
- Hepatitis A
- Hepatitis B
- MMR (measles, mumps and rubella)
- Polio
- Varicella (chickenpox)
Students entering seventh grade are required in addition to be vaccinated against meningococcal disease.
Most, but not all, schools in Texas submitted their immunization numbers to Texas Health and Human Services and there is variability in student populations presented in the state’s immunization data, which combines public school districts and individual private schools with smaller classes.
Overall, Texas private schools recorded lower immunization coverage and higher conscientious exemptions than public schools. Between 4% and 5% of all Texas kindergarteners had conscientious exemptions from vaccines.
Unlike medical exemptions, conscientious exemptions from state-mandated vaccines are for reasons such as personal belief and do not require a doctor’s note. In 2025, Texas passed a law that makes it easier for parents to request an exemption form from Texas Health and Human Services. Schools typically approve all requests.
Among El Paso public schools, the Anthony Independent School District and charter school districts Burnham Wood and Harmony were the only districts to report immunization coverage below 95% for kindergarteners in all or some vaccines. Rates improved to above 95% in all vaccines for public school seventh graders in El Paso.
El Paso private schools that reported immunization coverage below 95% for kindergarteners in all or some vaccines were Immanuel Christian School, Jesus Chapel School, Keystone Christian School, Mountain West Montessori and Radford School.
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Private school seventh graders in El Paso had varying rates of immunization coverage, with some of the lowest rates recorded in Tdap/Td and meningococcal vaccinations. Schools that reported coverage between 60% and 90% in Tdap/Td and meningococcal vaccines were Immanuel Christian School, Keystone Christian School, Most Holy Trinity Catholic School, Radford School and St. Mark’s School.
“There have not been enough formal studies examining this issue to determine why vaccine exemption rates tend to be higher in private schools than in public schools,” Ocaranza said. “Many factors could contribute, including differences in demographics, parental beliefs, education levels and other socioeconomic variables. Without comprehensive research that examines these factors, it would not be appropriate to draw definitive conclusions.”
Ocaranza, who works as a pediatrician in New Mexico, said parents often ask why their children need to be vaccinated against diseases that are no longer common in their community or if their children are healthy.
They also asked whether vaccine ingredients can cause other diseases or complications and whether receiving multiple vaccines could overwhelm a child’s immune system, he said. Some parents may want to delay vaccinations or follow a different schedule than the one recommended.
Vaccine hesitancy is often driven by misinformation found on the internet and social media, Ocaranza said. It’s important to have a respectful, open conversation with parents to understand their concerns and answer parents’ questions with scientific evidence, he said.
“The recommended immunization schedule is designed to protect children when they are most vulnerable to serious diseases, and delaying vaccines can leave them unprotected for longer periods,” Ocaranza said.
When a community has a high rate of immunity, it creates a shield of protection for the most vulnerable – the elderly, children, people with chronic medical conditions, infants undeveloped immune systems who are not old enough to receive certain vaccinations, said Dr. Armando Meza, infectious disease specialist at Texas Tech Health El Paso.
That’s the advantage of herd immunity, especially for highly transmissible respiratory diseases such as measles, he said.
“I get my vaccine for not only personal benefit, but I’m protecting other people,” Meza said. “That’s a very important message to be conveyed.”
“If I were to talk to a parent, that would be the approach,” he said. “A decision to look at two perspectives: the individual perspective, which I respect, and the benefit of the community.”
The post Bucking Texas decline in vaccination, El Paso public schools record high immunization rates appeared first on El Paso Matters.
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