As new students prepare for college in 2012, it is critical that they plan to get vaccinated against bacterial meningitis before registration. In fact, a new Texas law requires it.

Texas is the first state in the country to require all first-time and transfer college students under 30 to be vaccinated. Meningitis is a rare but deadly disease in which the membranes protecting the brain and spinal cord become inflamed.

Brazosport College will require students who are affected by this law to show proof of immunization before allowing them to register for spring 2012 classes. Documentation showing that the student has received the immunization within the last five years must be provided at least 10 days prior to the first day of the semester in order to register for classes.

Students must submit one of the following in order to be cleared for registration:

• the signature or stamp of a physician (or his/her designee) or public health personnel on a form that shows the month, day and year the vaccination dose or booster was administered

• an official immunization record generated from a state or local health authority

• an official record received from school officials, including a record from another state

The previous law on bacterial meningitis immunizations, effective since January 2010, required only students living in on-campus housing to be immunized. The new law includes off campus students which will affect many community colleges in the state, including Brazosport College.

About 1,500 Americans contract meningitis each year, with an increased incidence of the disease in adolescents and young adults, according to the National Meningitis Association. The disease has about an 11 percent fatality rate, and about 20 percent of the survivors live with serious disabilities.

For more information about Brazosport College’s requirements for proof of immunization and getting the immunization, please check www.brazosport.edu/vaccine.