NEARLY half of Liverpool school leavers have not been immunised against preventable deadly diseases.
Many youngsters in the city have not had the diphtheria, tetanus and polio booster shot needed to fully protect them from the illnesses.
And one fifth of children had not had all the recommended routine immunisations before the age of five in 2009/10.
Health chiefs said uptake of most childhood vaccines was steadily increasing overall, but admitted more work was needed to bring levels up.
There has been particular focus on improving uptake of both doses of the MMR jab, to stop cases of measles, mumps and rubella rising.
Dr Emer Coffey, consultant in Public Health at Liverpool Primary Care Trust (PCT) said: “In recent years, we have seen real and continuing improvements in Liverpool’s vaccination rates. For example, the latest data show that this year 86% of Liverpool children have had both doses of MMR before their fifth birthday, and this figure is increasing.
