Documentation of Immunity

The MA Department of Public Health strongly encourages getting the flu vaccine. By getting the flu vaccine it will protect from both the flu and it could decrease symptoms that could be confused with COVID-19. For more information about the recommendation of a flu vaccine, please visit MA Department of Public Health.  

All Northeastern University students are required to submit a completed and signed University Health Report.

Health reports should be submitted via email 617-373-2601 (fax) or email immunizations@northeastern.edu.

Northeastern University also requires a full COVID-19 vaccination series and a booster dose. Upload proof of the COVID-19 vaccines to vaccine.northeastern.edu.

Massachusetts law requires all University students to provide documentation of vaccination against Hepatitis B, Measles, Mumps, Rubella, Meningitis, Tetanus, Diphtheria, Pertussis and Varicella. Please complete the below form, sign the consent (page 1), and have your primary care clinician complete the state-mandated immunization form (page 2).  The completed University Health Report can be returned to University Health and Counseling Services by mail, email immunizations@northeastern.edu or fax 617-373-2601.

Tdap (Tetanus-Diphtheria-Pertussis)

• Immunization within the last ten years is required.
• If a Tdap was received over ten years ago, either one Tdap or one Td vaccine is required.
• One Tdap is required if no previous Tdap has been received.

Hepatitis B

• A Series of three doses or a positive titer is required¹.
• The second dose must be given at least one month after the first,
• The third dose must be given at least two months after the second doses and at least four months after the first.

MMR (Measles, Mumps and Rubella)

• Two doses or a positive titre is required¹.
• The first dose must be given after the first birthday.
• The second dose must be given at least twenty-eight days after the first.
• Birth in the U.S. before 1957 is acceptable for establishing immunity only for non-health science students.

Varicella (Chickenpox)

• Two doses or a positive titre is required¹.
• The first dose must be given after the first birthday.
• The second dose must be given at least twenty-eight days after the first.
• A reliable history of chickenpox is also acceptable.
• A reliable history of chickenpox includes a diagnosis of chickenpox, or interpretation of parent/guardian description of chickenpox, by a physician, nurse practitioner, physician assistant or designee.

Meningococcal (Meningitis)

• One dose of MenACWY vaccine is required for all full-time students twenty-one years of age or younger.
• The dose of MenACWY vaccine must have been received on or after the student’s sixteenth birthday.
• Doses received before the sixteenth birthday do not count towards this requirement.
• Students may decline MenACWY vaccine after they have read and signed the MDPH Massachusetts Declination (Meningitis Waiver) and the Massachusetts Department of Public Health Fact Sheet.

¹A “positive titre” is a result of a blood test that confirms immunity to a specific infectious illness.

UHCS participates in the Massachusetts Immunization Information System (MIIS)

Massachusetts Immunization Information System (MIIS)   Massachusetts law (M.G.L. c. 111, Section 24M) requires providers to report immunization information to a computerized immunization registry known as the Massachusetts Immunization Information System (MIIS). 

• The MIIS stores immunization records for you and your clinician and can help prevent outbreaks of disease like measles and the flu. 
• All information in the MIIS is kept secure and confidential. 
• The MIIS allows information to be shared with health care providers, boards of public health and state agencies concerned with immunization. 
• You have the right to object to the sharing of your immunization information across providers in the MIIS. If you object, please complete this form and bring it to your appointment or submit it to uhcs@northeastern.edu.  
• For more information, visit the MIIS website at www.mass.gov/dph/miis or contact the Massachusetts Immunization Program MIIS Help Desk directly at 617-983-4335.
• The MIIS opt-out does not apply to reportable suspected and positive diseases. 

What If I am unable to provide all of the documentation required?

Students who cannot provide documentation of all required immunizations, or who’s immunizations have expired may receive any of these by seeing your local health care provider, UHCS or visiting a local travel clinic in Boston.

Many health plans do not cover the cost of these immunizations. Students should review their own health plan benefits for their plan coverage. Students with Northeastern University Student Health Plan (NUSHP) are covered for all of their required vaccine costs. If you do not have NUSHP, vaccines may be purchased with a credit or debit card.

UHCS Notifications to Students

UHCS emails students after their University Health Reports have been received and processed. New students are sent an email stating that their Health Report is complete or that something is missing. Students who have not provided complete information will receive a second email during the term indicating what information is missing and informing them that they will not have access to registration. Students who are still not in compliance are sent another email indicating that the Health Center hold is on their account and detailing what information must be provided to UHCS.

Health Center Holds

•  A student will have a Health Center hold if the student has failed to provide complete documentation of  immunizations in accordance with Massachusetts state law.

•  Deadlines for providing this information are as follows: the end of June for undergraduate students entering in the following fall; the beginning of December for undergraduate students entering in the following spring; one month prior to the beginning of a graduate or law student’s program.

•  Health Center holds will prevent students from registering for an upcoming term. The Health Center hold also will prevent a student’s ability to complete “I Am Here.”

•  For questions about holds due to state mandated immunity requirements, please call (617) 373-2772 or email immunizations@northeastern.edu.