INDIANAPOLIS -- Some Indiana parents are scrambling to meet the deadline to get mandatory vaccines for their school-aged children, now required by law.

Any child who misses the Sept. 13 deadline cannot attend class until he or she gets the proper shots, 6News' Stacia Matthews reported.

The state now requires one vaccination for bacterial meningitis, tetanus, diphtheria and whooping cough, while students entering kindergarten and sixth through 12th grades must have two chickenpox vaccines.

Despite school districts sending notices home last spring and doctors' offices posting signs about the new immunizations requirements, health officials said some parents have been slow to respond.

"We tried really hard to avoid disasters, but it just hasn't worked out," said Johnson County Health Department Medical Director Dr. Craig Moorman. "We've been very busy. It's human nature to procrastinate."

Indianapolis Public Schools has extended the grace period for vaccines by a week, and Marion County health officials said 60,000 children still need at least one of the new vaccinations.

On Sept. 11, the department will hold back-to-school clinics at Northwest High School and John Marshall Community School to offer the vaccinations free of charge.

"We want parents to bring their children, a lot of patience and shot records. And we hope they are current shot records," said Marion County Health Department spokesman John Althardt.

He said even if parents don't have their child's current records, he asked that they bring what they have to help speed up the process.

Moorman said his department will be prepared for the last-minute rush.

"We've had a few times where we've run out of vaccines that we were focusing on this fall," he said. "We had to overnight more from our suppliers to have enough."

More Information: Indiana Code on Immunizations