Immunization News Conference
April 16, 1998
Note: The Governor sometimes deviates from text.
Thank you, Dr. Rhodes Boyd.
It's always an exciting day when we get together and talk about immunization in South Carolina. Because that's one area where year after year, we have become the pacesetter for the entire nation.
The same is true again this year.
I'm proud to report that for the third year in a row, South Carolina has maintained a 90 percent immunization rate for our two-year-olds...and we've kept our bragging rights as a leader in America for immunizations.
What's really exciting about these numbers is that most folks here remember a time when it wasn't always so.
As recently as 1991, half the toddlers in South Carolina...fifty percent...weren't being fully immunized. But today almost every child in this state is getting their shots on time.
That's because the folks in this room knew we had to do better. You started rethinking our strategy. You recruited help from the private sector. And you came up with creative ways to educate and empower parents.
Governor Carroll Campbell, of course, got that ball rolling for us with the Governor's Immunization Outreach Campaign Committee in '93. And South Carolina's children have him to thank for such visionary leadership.
But government...working alone...could never have made the fundamental progress we've made together.
Health administrators, doctors, pediatricians had to take the ball and run with it. Now over 500 practices statewide are participating in the VAFAC program...where children can get shots for free right in their own doctor's office, instead of going to the health department.
And as always, without our friends in the private sector...the South Carolina
Alli
ance for Children, McDonald's and Hope for Kids...none of this would be possible.
Together, we've come very close to the pinnacle of success. But we know that until every single child is safe from disease, until every parent is educated on how to protect their children's health, there's still more work to do.
We've got to keep turning up the heat a little higher every year, keep thinking of new ideas, keep broadening our focus to include more children....because we know that immunization is the shortest, most cost-effective route to lifelong health.
In fact, we know that for every dollar we spend on immunization, we actually end up saving more than $10!
So ladies and gentlemen, I urge you: keep using all the skills, talents and energy you have to get the word out to parents.
I'm excited about one new public awareness tool that my wife Mary Wood helped kick off this January.
Hallmark Cards has offered to donate tens of thousands of personalized greeting cards for us to send to our state's newest parents every month.
We're congratulating moms and dads on one hand. But at the same time, the cards also send a reminder on the importance of keeping their baby's shots current...and an immunization schedule to show them how to do just that.
We're one of 35 states partnering with Hallmark. By the end of last month, 11,225 parents had already gotten the message, and a lot of them have been writing to thank us.
That initiative is just one more innovative way to get the word out on the street...into the homes...and to get children into the doctor's office. And it's an example of what we can...and should...do more of.
Together we've made children's health a top priority in this administration.
We've expanded Medicaid coverage so that 75,000 more children of poverty can have access to good, consistent medical care.
Through strong public private partnerships, we've reduced infant mortality to the lowest point ever.
And as we've proclaimed April Hope for Healthy Kids Month in South Carolina, we again celebrate our progress in protecting children from deadly diseases.
All of you should be very proud today. You've been part of something that matters.
You've been part of a life-saving mission...one that's still saving lives today.
And in tribute to this campaign's hardest crusaders, we want to recognize their service with some awards.
There's one name that's been a driving force in this campaign from the very beginning. He's a friend and one-time colleague of mine, former Rep. Jim Mattos.
His love for children made him a great coach and teacher, not to mention a tireless advocate for women and children's issues,
He was the sponsor of No Shots-No Day Care legislation.
And as the very first chairman for the Governor's Immunization Outreach Campaign, I believe it's only fitting that we present Jim Mattos today with South Carolina's very first Big Shot Award.
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