IDAHO — Back-to-school season means families across Idaho are reviewing vaccine requirements for students heading into the classroom.
Idaho has seen a steady decline in childhood vaccination rates over the past six years, according to the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare.
“The most concentrated time for vaccines is in the first 24 months of life,” said long-time Treasure Valley pediatrician Dr. Steve Smith.
Smith explained vaccines are an important tool for keeping children healthy.
“There’s so many things that our kids are exposed to, and we can vaccinate for a ton of things; we choose the things that are most high risk of leading that child into the hospital or having a complication to that illness — that’s what we vaccinate for,” Smith said.
WATCH | Hear from Dr. Smith about vaccinations—
Common childhood vaccines protect against illnesses including polio, tetanus, whooping cough, chickenpox and notably — due to recent outbreaks — measles.
“There was a point in the United States that we just didn’t see measles cases. Now, we’ve had outbreaks in our neighboring state in Utah had a significant outbreak, and they still have it, and it’s just a matter of time that we see it here in the community,” Smith said.
According to the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare, Idaho recorded 24 measles cases over the past year. Of those, 23 cases involved people who were unvaccinated or had an unknown vaccination status.
“It causes kids to be sick, very, very sick. We just don’t want that. We don’t want the complications of measles,” Smith said.
State data shows Idaho’s childhood vaccination rates have steadily declined. During the 2019-2020 school year, about 86% of students were fully vaccinated; by the 2025-2026 school year, that number had fallen to 66%.
Idaho is one of a few states that allows vaccine exemptions for philosophical reasons. According to the Department of Health and Welfare, philosophical and religious exemptions account for almost 98% of vaccine exemptions statewide, while about 2% are for medical reasons.
“Whatever they choose is best for their child, we respect what the parents are wanting to do. However, we do wanna feel like we wanna be a resource for the families,” Smith said. “We wanna make sure that you’re aware of the potential implications of not staying on the schedule for the vaccine and the risks that you’re taking."
Families can track Idaho measles cases, vaccination rates and influenza activity through the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare dashboard.
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