When preparing your child for their first day back to school, don’t overlook the importance of vaccinations.

While some vaccinations are required for day care, elementary school and secondary school, Dr. Patricia Quinlisk explains that there are also recommended vaccines that are necessary to get.

"We do recommend that all children get the recommended vaccines in addition to the required ones," says Quinlisk, medical director and state epidemiologist with the Iowa Department of Public Health.

Recommendations are made by the Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices (ACIP), a national advisory committee that is made up of a non-governmental, non-political group of people from around the United States. Quinlisk explains that the committee analyzes the vaccine, looks at the disease it’s going to prevent and discusses who should receive it...