WHEREAS, Vaccines have aided in reducing the burden of widespread and often fatal diseases, enabling individuals to lead longer and healthier lives while reducing health care costs; and

WHEREAS, Vaccine-preventable diseases cause 1.5 million deaths among children worldwide each year; and

WHEREAS, Vaccine-preventable diseases cause 50,000 deaths among adults in the United States each year; and

WHEREAS, Herd immunity, or community immunity, is a form of indirect protection from infectious disease that occurs when a large percentage of the population has become immune to an infection, thereby providing a measure of protection for individuals who cannot be vaccinated due to serious conditions that weaken the immune system, including cancer, HIV, and type 1 diabetes; and

WHEREAS, Continued vigilance and awareness must be exercised to avoid further outbreaks of diseases that are thought to be eradicated, like in the example of measles. Measles was thought to be eliminated in the United States as of 2000, but from January 1, 2019, to July 25, 2019, there were 1,164 cases across the United States. In California, there have been five separate outbreaks, with 38 outbreak-associated cases from January 1, 2019, to August 7, 2019, reported, which, according to the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), is the highest number since 1992; and

WHEREAS, Although much attention has been paid to the importance of childhood vaccinations, there is a general lack of awareness of adult-recommended vaccines, and a misperception that immunizations are unnecessary for healthy adults; and

WHEREAS, Pneumonia and influenza are the fifth leading cause of death among adults 65 years of age or older, but fewer than 75 percent of those persons are appropriately vaccinated in California; and

WHEREAS, The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) develops recommendations on how to use vaccines to control disease in the United States, and the CDC sets and periodically updates the United States immunization schedule based on recommendations from ACIP; and

WHEREAS, For example, the CDC and the ACIP recommend that healthy adults 50 years of age and older be vaccinated against shingles to prevent shingles and shingles-related complications; and

WHEREAS, As an illustration, despite the recommendations of CDC officials and other experts that all healthy adults be vaccinated against shingles, as of 2015 only 30 percent of eligible adults had received the shingles vaccine nationally; and

WHEREAS, The CDC has consistently seen adult vaccination compliance fall below targets, and aims to increase compliance for influenza and pneumococcal vaccination in adults as part of its Healthy People 2020 goals; and

WHEREAS, The annual economic burden of vaccine-preventable diseases in American adults is estimated to be in excess of $9 billion; and

WHEREAS, The Institute of Medicine has stated that one of the six causes of excess costs in the United States health care system is missed prevention opportunities; and

WHEREAS, National Immunization Awareness Month (NIAM) was developed and sponsored by the CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases to highlight the importance of immunizations, one of the top 10 public health accomplishments of the 20th century, and raise awareness about the important role vaccines play in preventing serious, sometimes deadly, diseases across the lifespan; and

WHEREAS, August is an ideal month for California children and youth to receive immunizations required for elementary and secondary school entrance and elevation, and strongly recommended for students in postsecondary education settings, and for adult parents, guardians, and family members in concert with this preparation; now, therefore, be it