Code of Maine Rules
10 - DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
144 - DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES - GENERAL
Chapter 261 - Immunization Requirements for School Children (a joint rule with the Department of Education, Ch. 126)
Section 144-261-5 - IMMUNIZATION DOSAGE

Universal Citation: 10 ME Code Rules ยง 144-261-5

Current through 2024-38, September 18, 2024

The following schedule shows the minimum requirements for immunizing agents administered to children enrolling in or attending school.

A. Diphtheria/Tetanus/Pertussis (DPT/DTaP/Tdap/Td):

1. For pre-kindergarten students only, four doses of DPT/DTaP are required. The third and fourth dose must be separated by at least six months.

2. For students ages six years old and younger in kindergarten or grades above, a total of five doses of DPT/DTaP are required, except that, if the fourth dose was administered on or after the child's fourth birthday, then only four doses are required.

3. For students seven years of age and older, a minimum of three doses of DPT/DTaP with the last dose administered on or after the child's fourth birthday is required. A student who did not complete their primary DTP/DTaP immunization series or who has an unknown vaccine history, requires a single dose of Tdap followed by either Tdap or Td until three doses have been achieved.

4. In addition to receiving the required doses for DPT/DTaP, one dose of Tdap vaccine is required for students entering grade 7. Any valid dose of Tdap after age seven satisfies the requirement for 7th grade entry.

B. Measles/Mumps/Rubella (MMR): All students in grades kindergarten through 12 must have been immunized against measles, mumps, and rubella with two doses of MMR vaccine, provided the first dose is administered no sooner than 12 months of age and at least four weeks separate the two doses. For pre-kindergarten students only, one dose of MMR vaccine is required.

C. Poliomyelitis: For students in grades kindergarten through 12, four doses of inactivated polio vaccine (IPV) or oral polio vaccine (OPV) or combination of both are required. The first dose must be administered at least six weeks after birth, with subsequent doses given at least four weeks apart. The fourth dose is not needed if the third dose is given on or after the fourth birthday. For students in pre-kindergarten only, three doses of IPV or OPV or a combination of both are required. The first dose must be administered at least six weeks after birth, with subsequent doses given at least four weeks apart.

D. Varicella: Two doses of varicella vaccine are required for children in grades kindergarten through 12. Children should receive the first dose at 12 through 15 months old and a second dose at 4 through 6 years old.

E. Meningococcal Meningitis: Effective for the start of school year 2018, one dose of quadrivalent meningococcal conjugate vaccine (MCV4) is required for children entering grade seven. Any child entering grade twelve is required to have received two doses of MCV4. The first dose must have been received on or after the eleventh birthday, and the second dose must have been received on or after the sixteenth birthday, at least eight weeks after the first dose. However, if the first dose is administered when the child is sixteen years of age or older, only one dose is required.

For children who have not received vaccinations on a schedule that is in accordance with this rule, the child or parent, in consultation with a Maine-licensed physician, registered nurse practitioner or physician's assistant, may determine an appropriate catch-up schedule that will meet immunity requirements for this rule. This plan for immunization must be maintained in the child's health record.

Disclaimer: These regulations may not be the most recent version. Maine may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site or the information linked to on the state site. Please check official sources.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.