FAQ

The Incentive

On September 9th, an incentive program was launched to inspire year-round employees on our Vermont and California campuses to verify their immunity to measles*.   Additional days off will be added as Regular Holidays and follow the same timecard and pay practices.  Employees can upload verification of a measles vaccination or laboratory confirmation of measels (rubeola virus) immunity by the end of business on 9/30/24 to achieve the following incentive:

• If we reach 75% compliance, we’ll take the Wednesday before Thanksgiving off.
• If we reach 85% compliance, we’ll take Tuesday and Wednesday off.
• If we reach 95% compliance, we’ll take Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday off.

Local medical practices and pharmacies in Vermont have been alerted to expect requests for vaccination and or lab orders.  Employees are encouraged to schedule appointments for vaccination and/ or lab work prior to September 30th ASAP.  Please note that some individuals who opted for labwork learned that they were not immune to measles and then had to get a vaccination dose.  Please caaount for this possibility when considering your options. 

Vaccination Clinics

Local Vermont pharmacies offer easy online scheduling for MMR vaccination:

https://www.walgreens.com/findcare/schedule-vaccine 

https://kinneydrugs.com/locations/appointments/

You may be able to call other local pharmacies in your area to arrange a dose of MMR vaccine.

On-campus clinics will be available while supplies last. MMR vaccination clinics will take place at Wilson Hall (McCullough):

• Friday, Sept 13, 9-11 a.m.
• Tuesday, Sept 24, 11 a.m.-1 p.m.
• Thursday Sept 26, 11 a.m.-1 p.m.

Sign up for an on-campus MMR vaccination clinic (walk-ins will be accommodated as possible).

* Summer-only employees and MIIS employees working at the Centers are still required to upload verification of measles immunity but would not be included in the total goal for the purposes of this incentive.

For instructions on how to upload your proof of immunity, please refer to the How to Upload Your Proof of Immunity page. 

For examples of records that meet the requirements, please refer to our Proof of Immunity Examples page.

No. You are not required to provide proof of immunity if you work remotely. However, if you come to campus and there is a measles outbreak you must leave campus immediately. As such, we recommend that you upload your proof of immunity information if you are planning to be on campus for any reason.

Contact your healthcare provider and see if they have documented proof of immunity that meets the stated requirements.  If not, they can order the lab test for you or arrange an appointment to get a vaccine. These are typically routine procedures that would not require a special visit to the doctor.   

Many pharmacies provide vaccines by appointment, including the MMR or MMRV vaccines which protect against measles. There is no measles-only vaccine available in the US at this time.  

If you are traveling or do not have a primary care provider available, many urgent care centers can arrange testing or vaccination.

It is important that you keep the results in a safe place and upload them to the Middlebury system once it is available. After that, keep the documents and copies in a secure location for future use if it becomes necessary.

If any case of measles occurs within the Middlebury community, any individual who has not documented proof of immunity will be excluded from the workplace in compliance with the requirements of the Department of Health. You will be excluded from the workplace for 21 days following the last case of measles. Individuals may be able to work remotely or will need to use their CTO for the exclusion period (but note that the exclusion period may last weeks or months and individuals who cannot work may not be able to be paid for the entire period). 

We ask that you provide proof of immunity now to ensure maximum flexibility for yourself and our institution in the event of an outbreak. If you are unable to meet the June 15 deadline due to the need for more time to obtain the appropriate paperwork, there will not be immediate employment action. That said, we ask you to upload your immunity documentation as soon as possible to help us organize the information and avoid disruption to campus operations.

Simply put, any individual, including faculty and staff members without documented proof of immunity would be subject to campus exclusion for several weeks or longer if we have a single case of measles on campus. This would be incredibly disruptive for those employees and the campus community.   Fortunately, proof of immunity is relatively easy to get.

Be able to demonstrate either:

• Proof of birth before 1957, OR
• A laboratory result showing sufficient IgG antibody against measles to confer immunity, OR
• Valid documentation showing 2 documented doses of MMR vaccine at least 28 days apart, with the first dose being obtained after 12 months of age.  
  • Infants 6 through 11 months of age traveling internationally should receive one dose of MMR vaccine. Infants who get one dose of MMR vaccine before their first birthday should get two more doses according to the routinely recommended schedule.

To avoid exclusion during a measles outbreak, individuals older than 12 months of age traveling internationally should receive two doses of MMR vaccine spaced at least 28 days apart. If you do not have sufficient time to get both MMR doses prior to travel to the US, having one dose will help reduce your risk of measles while you wait to get the second dose after arrival. While there is a risk of campus exclusion during the 28 day interval between doses, you can reduce your risk by getting the first dose of MMR vaccine as soon as possible. In subsequent years, retaining proof of two doses of MMR vaccine 28 days apart will prevent exclusion from campus under current guidelines.

During an outbreak, Middlebury College would work with the health department to offer MMR doses to individuals who would benefit from vaccination. Because the timing of vaccination during an outbreak cannot be absolutely guaranteed, having proof of immunity or getting vaccinated in advance of arrival is always the best option.

Individuals who may have been exposed to measles prior to coming to campus should avoid travel and notify both their healthcare provider and the school they are planning to attend/ work at for further instructions. College health officials will review the information promptly and make a determination regarding arrival. In most cases, having documented proof of immunity will be sufficient to allow travel to campus. 

Total length of isolation will be determined in conjunction with the health department. Measles is contagious for up to four days after the onset of the rash. General guidelines state that confirmed cases will be isolated from others through four full days after rash onset. 

Measles Vaccine Contraindications

1. Severe allergic reaction to vaccine component or following a prior dose
2. Severe immunocompromise
3. Systemic high-dose corticosteroid therapy for 14 days or more
4. HIV infection, regardless of immunocompetence status*
5. Family history of congenital or hereditary immunodeficiency in first-degree relatives
6. Pregnancy

*MMRV only

Measles Vaccine Precautions

1. Moderate or severe acute illness
2. Alpha-gal allergy (consult with physician)
3. Receipt of antibody-containing blood products (wait 3 to 11 months to vaccinate)
4. History of thrombocytopenic purpura or thrombocytopenia
5. Need for tuberculin skin testing or interferon-gamma release assay testing
6. Simultaneous use of aspirin or aspirin-containing products*
7. Personal or family history of seizures of any etiology*
8. Receipt of specific antiviral drugs 24 hours before vaccination*

*MMRV only

Maybe, possibly, it depends…

In order to avoid exclusion during a measles outbreak, a record of measles vaccination must be legible and in English (Original documentation may be in a foreign language with translation attached and show all of the following:

1. Patient name and date of birth consistent with an official government ID (i.e. passport or driver’s license). 
2. Medical clinic or pharmacy contact information. 
3. The vaccine provided 
4. The number of doses provided 
5. The date(s) provided 

The vaccine(s) must meet the CDC recommended dosing schedule for immunity (see Table 3). 

International travelers, undergraduate students, and healthcare workers require two documented doses of MMR vaccine. Others, such as short program summer students and employees who do not fall into those categories require one documented dose of MMR vaccine (Language Schools, BLSE, Writers’ Conference, etc.) 

Verbal reports of vaccination without written documentation will not be accepted as presumptive evidence of immunity. 

See requirements and examples. 

If you were enrolled as an undergraduate at Middlebury College since 2016, you will be able to access your immunization records through the Student Health Portal. Currently enrolled Middlebury undergraduates do not need to complete this step; however, Middlebury graduates attending summer programs must follow summer program upload instructions.

1. Go to midb.studenthealthportal.com and log in using your student ID number.  
2. Select “Immunization History.”  
3. Download a copy of your immunization records.
4. Keep a copy for yourself.
5. Upload the record using instructions provided for summer programs (available soon)

You can also see a quick summary of your immunizations across the top of the screen. If you are having any problems with accessing this information, please reach out to Health Services at healthservices@middlebury.edu.

Measles (Rubeola) IgG is a readily available blood test that could be used as valid documented proof of immunity against measles and may be a good option for individuals who are certain they received measles vaccine but do not have a valid immunization record. 

Lab report requirements include that the report be an official report, legible and in English (original documentation may be in a foreign language with translation attached) and show all of the following:

• Patient name and date of birth consistent with an official government ID (i.e. passport or driver’s license)

• Date the lab test was obtained.

• Laboratory contact information. 

• An interpretation indicating that the result shows immunity to measles (rubeola). 

  • Equivocal and /or negative  results mean that the person is not considered immune to measles.

Individuals with valid medical exemptions can upload a copy of this medical exemption form signed by their healthcare provider. Unfortunately, individuals with valid medical exemptions will still need to be excluded from campus during a measles outbreak. Those individuals should have a detailed personal emergency plan including where they will go and how they will get there in the event of immediate campus exclusion during an outbreak.

CDC and health department guidelines state the following: “Persons who have been exempted from measles vaccination for medical reasons and who do not receive appropriate postexposure prophylaxis within the appropriate time should be excluded from affected institutions in the outbreak area until 21 days after the onset of rash in the last case of measles.”

If a case of measles was identified on our campus, we would follow health department guidance and ask anyone without valid documented evidence of immunity to pack and leave campus immediately. Card access would be shut off until the period of exclusion was completed or valid documentation of immunity could be provided.

Having a personal plan for exclusion is recommended for individuals without documented proof of immunity, including where you would go and how you would get there.

There is no plan to refund tuition for campus exclusion due to a measles outbreak. Exclusion can last several weeks depending on the size of the outbreak. Individuals with valid medical exemptions and/or anyone who does not wish to comply with the requirement to demonstrate immunity should consider purchasing third-party tuition insurance.

Individuals born before January 1, 1957, are considered to be immune to measles due to prior exposures and infections in the years prior to 1957. Individuals born before 1957 are not required to upload documents but will need to attest their birth date. If they have health concerns they should contact their healthcare provider.

Yes. All Middlebury students are required to show proof of immunity to measles in order to avoid campus exclusion during an outbreak. Current Middlebury College students enrolled in regular academic year Vermont undergraduate programs must upload their immunization records prior to coming to campus, so those students will likely already have their information on file. All other students should prepare to upload valid documented proof of immunity.

If you already have valid documented proof of immunity, there would be no cost.

Cost estimates vary, but online testing prices can be found for around $135, and MMR vaccine doses can be found at pharmacies for under $100.  

Many health insurance plans cover the costs of vaccinations and/or antibody testing, but you should confirm if that is true for your insurance plan as well as how it should be billed (i.e. in-network, preventative care). 
 
For Middlebury employees with Cigna, our GMHEC colleagues have confirmed that Cigna allows for coverage on both the antibody lab testing as well as the vaccine for MMR as follows:

• Coverage benefits will be based on whether the provider is in-network or out-of-network.
• In-network will pay at 100 percent when billed as preventive. Be sure that you confirm that it is in-network and will be billed as preventative.  
• For out-of-network providers:
  • Gold and Silver plans pay 70 percent for immunizations after the deductible.
  • Platinum immunization plans pay 100 percent. 

General information about the MMR vaccine can be found at https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vpd/mmr/public/ and https://www.cdc.gov/measles/vaccination.html.

A recent study determined that a third dose of MMR vaccine was safe while another recent study determined that a third dose of MMR vaccine was effective in boosting immunity against measles.

Individuals concerned about vaccine safety should contact their healthcare provider.

Yes. Anyone living or working on campus without documented proof of immunity will be immediately excluded from campus during a measles outbreak; therefore all individuals living on campus including partners/ spouses/ children will be required to provide valid proof of immunity.

No; however, during an outbreak, partners/spouses and children of faculty and staff NOT living on campus would need to provide proof of immunity if they would like such family members to be able to enter campus in the event of an outbreak.

Yes, in order to avoid campus exclusion during an outbreak.

Middlebury employs a variety of security controls to ensure that collected information is secure. The collected information is encrypted both in transit and at rest and can only be accessed by a limited number of authorized individuals. Only the information necessary to establish proof of immunity is collected and the collected information will only be retained for as long as is required per health department guidelines. 

Many medical practices use EPIC MyChart as electronic health record.  Below are instructions to help you access the principal version of your lab results which you can then upload.

1. Log in to your Epic My Chart account (i.e. mychart.uvmhealth.org for Porter hospital practices)
2. Click Test Results on the top menu bar and a list of test should appear.
3. Click on the Measles (Rubeola) IgG test in the list of tests and the Measles IgG test result shows up.
4. Now, on the right upper edge of that result, click on the printer icon and a printable version of the report will appear.
5. Either print or save the page as a pdf and upload it into the Middlebury Measles Immunity Verification site.

By clicking on the printer icon you get an uploadable version that meets the requirements for a valid lab test.