Record number seek vaccine exemption to start school ... so where does this end?

**Christy Strawser** (0:00)
The day's biggest stories, the people behind the headlines, the conversations you won't hear anywhere else. I'm Christy Strawser, you're listening to Audacy's On Deadline. Let's talk record highs and lows. As in the number of kids who sought a vaccine exemption to start kindergarten, we're at a record high. And the number of kids who will mingle with classmates while vaccinated to protect themselves from exposure to illnesses that were eradicated decades ago, that's at a record low.
Here's WCCO in Minneapolis.

**SPEAKER_2** (0:30)
New CDC data shows vaccine exemptions climbed to 4.2% during the 2025-2026 school year. That is up from 3.6% the year before, nearly double the 2.2% from just five years ago. So why aren't kids getting vaccinated? Well, the data shows most exemptions are actually non-medical reasons such as religious exemptions. And it comes as the country is dealing with a record breaking year for measles cases. In the last 35 years, the CDC says the percentage of kindergartners getting the MMR vaccine, which protects against measles, mumps and rubella, slipped to 92.4%.
And that is below the 95%, experts say is needed to maintain that herd immunity.

**SPEAKER_3** (1:14)
And Minnesota state health leaders are trying to get the word out to get those children vaccinated before the start of the school year. Epidemiologist Ben Christensen says they've seen numbers go down both nationally and here in Minnesota.

**Ben Christensen** (1:25)
For example, with measles across the country in the last couple of years, with increasing numbers of outbreaks. And so we're working with our local public health partners and healthcare partners to get the word out about the importance of these immunizations before school starts.

**SPEAKER_3** (1:42)
According to the CDC, 92.4% of kindergartners in the latest school year were vaccinated against measles, down two and a half points since the start of the COVID pandemic.

**Dr. Brian McDonough** (1:55)
Measles cases are on the rise. Here's what you need to know. I'm your medical editor, Dr. Brian McDonough. We're starting to see these cases sporadically. It's rapidly moving. Measles is spread through coughing, sneezing, droplet nuclei and it can stay in the air for a couple hours. So you literally could be somewhere where somebody with measles was and not even know it and pick it up. That's the fear we have. Initially, somebody has a high fever, they have a cough, they get a runny nose, watery eyes, kind of like flu-like symptoms.
One of the tips is you can get these things called coplic spots, which are like these white spots inside your mouth. But the big thing that really shows up that really changes the picture is you get a rash. Children with measles, a certain percentage can get not only very sick, but they can get brain damage and it can even lead to death. And they're the ones we worry about. You know, the best protection still is getting vaccinated. And it's a safe vaccine. We've been using it. We've tested it for years. And all of a sudden, what we're doing is we're consciously taking something away that can protect our children and protect all of us. You know, parents, I think in their heart of hearts, they want to do what's right for their child. Of course they do. And they're afraid because they've heard so many different rumors and things.
And that's the problem, trying to get the real information out there.

**Christy Strawser** (3:18)
Keeping track of your kids' vaccine history is one job of a parent. But there's also keeping track of their digital footprint. Here's Tommy Tucker in New Orleans with how far you're supposed to go.

**Tommy Tucker** (3:31)
Half of the parents in the United States say they sometimes go through their kids' phones.
Do you? Where's the line between snooping, giving them privacy and keeping them safe? We'll get some answers. Talking to Dr. Judy Hoag, licensed clinical psychologist, host of the Savvy Psychologist Podcast, our longtime friend. We're going to talk about parents and smartphones, although we're really talking about phones and mental health here for the most part, aren't we?

**Dr. Judy Hoag** (3:55)
Of course. Everyone's favorite topic.

**Tommy Tucker** (3:57)
Tell me about how they can negatively impact kids.

**Dr. Judy Hoag** (4:01)
Well, the thing is that phones are just so high stimuli, and things are happening so fast, and people can scroll and switch in between content really fast, and also simultaneously look at a bunch of content at the same time. And what we know about developing brains, especially, is that it will oftentimes impede the proper development of our executive functions and our attention stores. So even as adults, we may feel sometimes overwhelmed by all of that. And as children, because the brains are still under construction, it has a bigger impact that could end up carrying into other things that they need to do throughout the day, the tasks that they need to complete, and also just contributes to a sense of feeling overwhelmed, rushed, like there's just too much going on at the same time.