Windsor, Ont., health unit suspends 1,500 students over outdated immunization records

The public health unit in Windsor, Ont., says it has suspended more than 1,500 secondary school students due to out-of-date immunization records.

The Windsor-Essex Health Unit says it is holding clinics throughout the week for routine immunizations and students can return to school once their records have been updated.

The students or their guardians can submit updated records in person at the health unit’s offices, or have their primary health care providers fax them.

The suspensions come after the health unit issued notices to nearly 8,000 students in August, urging them to update their records by Monday or face suspension of up to 20 days.

The Immunization of School Pupils Act in Ontario requires that students get vaccinated against specific diseases including polio, measles, tetanus, mumps and diphtheria, to attend school, with some exemptions for religious or medical reasons.

Health units across the province have said routine immunizations — and public health records-keeping related to them — have lagged due to two years of COVID-19 pandemic disruptions and units been running clinics to help students catch up.