Many Kids With Private Insurance Missing Vaccinations

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Pneumococcal conjugate and meningococcal vaccines are among the newest vaccines, which tended to exhibit more disparities in delivery.

Due to limited financing for new vaccines, 10 states restricted access to publicly purchased new vaccines for underinsured children between 2004 and early 2006.

If 14 percent of children are assumed to be uninsured in the United States, then an estimated 2.3 million children aren't able to receive state-purchased meningococcal conjugate vaccine in the private sector, and 1.2 million children are unable to receive the vaccine in the public sector, the researchers said.

The problem is only likely to get worse, experts said, as the proportion of children with inadequate insurance policies grows.

"We had assumed that all children with health insurance had access to vaccines, but this group didn't have access," Lee said. "This is really concerning, because we see public health clinics as safety nets for vulnerable children. But program managers are forced to turn away underinsured kids, and this is creating ethical dilemmas."

"We need to be able to find or increase sources of funding for vaccine purchase for underinsured kids," she continued.

More information

There's more on childhood immunization at Every Child By Two.