With students heading back to school, many parents are hearing that they should keep their children’s measles vaccinations up to date. But that isn’t the only potentially deadly illness putting children at risk.
Amy Pisani, CEO of Vaccinate Your Family — a nonprofit organization that helps provide information to families about vaccinations and how they can get access to them — said pertussis, or whooping cough, remains a threat to children’s health. Vaccination is the best way to prevent whooping cough, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“We want to get the word out about by making sure people are diligent about whooping cough vaccinations because all the childhood vaccines are absolutely essential,” Pisani said. “So if we’re talking about childhood, there’s a schedule for your children and you should follow the schedule. Don’t delay.”
The CDC reported that as of Aug. 19, a total of 1,375 confirmed measles cases had been reported by 42 jurisdictions. There have been three deaths, including two school-aged children; all of those who died were not vaccinated.
Connecticut has not had a confirmed measles case since 2021.
For whooping cough, a contagious respiratory illness, the CDC reported a massive increase in cases between 2023 and 2024, from 7,063 to 35,435. Cases remain elevated in 2025, although the number has gone down since the peak in November 2024, according to the CDC.
Connecticut’s Department of Public Health (DPH) has reported that the percentage of kindergarten students in the state who received the required measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine in the 2024-25 school year was 98.3%, an increase of 0.5% from the previous year.
“Connecticut ranked highest in the country for two-dose measles vaccination rate among kindergarteners and our other increasing immunization rates stand in contrast to the national decline,” said DPH Commissioner Manisha Juthani. ” Our high vaccination rates have helped Connecticut remain one of eight states that has not had a case of measles yet, as cases continue to accumulate around the country.”
Juthani said getting vaccinations on a routine basis will help achieve and maintain community-level immunity.
“We cannot predict which respiratory viral infection will be most prevalent this season, but we can protect our families against them — and potential severe complications — by getting vaccinated this fall,” Juthani said.
Flu-related pediatric deaths on the rise
Pisani said there are still child fatalities resulting from the flu. According to the CDC, there have been 267 influenza-associated pediatric deaths reported during the 2024-25 season.
“This is the highest number of pediatric deaths reported in any non-pandemic influenza season since the condition became reportable in 2004,” according to the CDC’s website. “Among children who were eligible for influenza vaccination and with known vaccine status, 90% of reported pediatric deaths this season (compared to 82% during the 2023-24 season) have occurred in children who were not fully vaccinated against influenza.”
Pisani said this can turn into a tragedy for many families.
HPV Vaccine
Pisani also recommends that parents provide their children with the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) Vaccine; medical professionals say it helps protect against HPV infections that most commonly cause cancer, according to the CDC. This vaccine is for older children, with the CDC recommending 2 doses at ages 11–12 years.
Pisani said there is a lot of misinformation and intentional disinformation circulating in social media, but parents should make sure they ask questions of their doctors to get the appropriate, accurate information.
“You should ask questions. It’s not shameful to ask questions about what’s going into your children’s bodies,” Pisani said. “We’ll give you the facts and then we’ll also give you the sources for where you can go for more information.”