Kentucky Department for Public Health Issues Health Alert – Increase in Pertussis (Whooping Cough) in Kentucky

The Kentucky Department for Public Health (KDPH) has issued a health alert regarding an increase of pertussis (“whooping cough”) across the commonwealth. In addition, new parent and prenatal provider toolkits are now available to support immunization outreach efforts for pregnant Kentuckians. Pertussis can be life-threatening in young infants. Prenatal Tdap and prompt initiation of DTaP vaccines starting at 2 months of age are the best prevention against severe pertussis. Additional pertussis resources can be found on the KDPH website.