A child can fall victim to bacteria and viruses that cause serious disease. You can provide the best protection for your child by following the recommended immunization schedule. It is important that children receive all of their vaccines on time. You can check the schedule for the age or age range when each vaccine or series of shots is recommended. Talk with your child's healthcare provider about the use of combination vaccines to reduce the number of injections needed.

Take the childhood vaccine quiz to get a customized printout of recommended vaccines.

Harm in delaying or skipping vaccinations
In recent years, there has been a lot of misinformation in the media and on the internet about vaccinations. This has caused some parents to worry that vaccines could cause autism in their children. Unfortunately, this mistaken belief has led many parents to delay or even refuse vaccinations for their children. As a result, outbreaks of vaccine preventable diseases are occurring in communities where vaccination rates are low, both here in the United State and around the world. Without vaccines, children are at risk of developing dangerous, even deadly diseases, such as measles, mumps, whooping cough and the flu. For more information about the dangers of not getting vaccinated, visit the New York State Department of Health.

Pediatricians answer vaccine questions
Parents have many questions about the vaccines their children need. To answer these questions, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Sound Advice Web page features a collection of audio interviews with pediatricians, researchers, advocates and other parents.