2012 brought a change to college admission requirements with the addition of the meningitis shot. College students who are currently attending college and incoming college freshman students are required to have the shot before attending the school.
Meningitis is an infection that covers the brain and the spinal cord. There are two types of the disease, viral meningitis and bacterial meningitis. Bacterial meningitis occurs when the meninges are infected and can cause death within a 24-hour period after being exposed. Viral meningitis occurs through a virus and is less fatal than bacterial meningitis.
Prior to 2012, only those students living on campus were required to have the vaccine.
In early 2011, Texas A&M University student Nicolis Williams died after contracting bacterial meningitis. Williams lived off campus, therefore he didn’t have to receive the vaccine.
“No one wants to lose a child when they know there is a possibility that death could have been prevented,” his father Greg Williams said.
The passing of Senate Bill 1107 became effective Jan. 1, 2012. Without showing proper evidence that students have received the vaccine, they can not attend any classes on any college campus.
“The biggest concern for me is the high cost,” San Jacinto Community College student Mark Harmon told KHOU News in Houston.
On average, about a dozen college students die of bacterial meningitis infections every year in the United States. The Centers for Disease Control said that it is spread “from person to person through the exchange of respiratory and throat secretions.” The disease can occur through actions such as kissing, coughing and sneezing.
The meningitis vaccine requirement not only applies to current high school seniors, but to sophomores and juniors as well. They will need to receive the vaccination before taking ACC college classes during the summer.
