Children's Health

Tallahassee pediatrician Dr. Nectar Aintablian says data show that the vaccines are safe. While she recommends most of her patients get the shot, she understands some parents might hesitate.

Demand for the under-5 vaccines remains low, and some doctors say a bulk is going to waste. Dr. Brandon Chatani, a pediatric infectious disease specialist, joins WLRN's Sundial to discuss what parents should know.

Demand could delay when the vaccine is available, but the state's refusal to preorder from the federal government won't be the reason, says the director of infection prevention at UF Health Jacksonville.

The FDA could authorize the shots for emergency use with young children this week, but Florida Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo says there is insufficient data to "inform benefits and risk."

On Florida Roundup: Sharing reporting from across the state from our public media partners on public health, the pandemic and the opioid battle, plus a baseball tale.

Eye exams for children are required under federal law to be covered by most private health plans and Medicaid, and many states mandate school vision screenings.

The law requires that parents of students receiving mental-health services be informed of “other behavioral health services available through the student's school or local community-based” providers.

The 10-year-old case surrounds a lawsuit filed by the Justice Department after the agency accused Florida of unnecessarily institutionalizing children with disabilities in nursing homes.

Pediatric endocrinologist Dr. Michael Haller says treatments that new Florida guidelines warn against would occur only after considerable and detailed evaluations with patients and families.

Legislators in Kansas are pushing bills to expand exemptions for school vaccines, allowing religious exemptions for all vaccine requirements without families having to provide any proof of their beliefs. Similar bills are being introduced around the nation.

Congenital syphilis rates keep climbing, according to newly released federal data. But the primary funding source for most public health departments has been largely stagnant, its purchasing power dragged even lower by inflation.

Despite increased awareness, research advances and wider insurance coverage for therapies, children often wait months to get an autism diagnosis and begin intervention services.