As communities are seeing higher rates of illnesses like whooping cough and measles, Buncombe County
Public Health officials encourage parents and guardians to consult their child’s health care provider and make sure they get caught up on required vaccines to protect themselves and others.
The Importance of Vaccination
The U.S. has seen more measles cases this year than in the last 30 years, and in June 2025, North Carolina had its first confirmed measles case of the year. North Carolina has also seen more whooping cough (pertussis) cases this year than in the past 70 years. Whooping cough cases have been on a continuous rise in Buncombe County over the past two years. Between January 1 and August 18, 2025, there have been 82 confirmed and probable cases of whooping cough in Buncombe County residents, more than the 77 cases identified in all of 2024 and significantly higher than in the prior four years, which had an average of six cases a year.
“Let’s have a successful start to the school year by making sure all students are up to date on
their vaccines,” said Buncombe County Chief Medical Officer Dr. Jennifer Mullendore. “Vaccines help keep children healthy and in school, so they can learn and thrive.”
The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services’ Kindergarten Immunization Dashboard shows that 89.2% of Buncombe County kindergartners in the 2024-25 school year were up to date on all required immunizations by day 30 of enrollment. This was slightly down from 89.7% during the 2023-24 school year and further decreased from 92% during the 2022-23 and 2021-22 school years.
Most required vaccines are available at doctors’ offices, health centers, health departments, and
some pharmacies. Buncombe County’s Immunization Clinic at 40 Coxe Ave., Asheville, offers all childhood vaccines. Parents and guardians can call (828) 250-5096 to make an appointment or walk in on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 8-11:30 a.m. and Tuesday
and Thursday from 1-4:30 p.m.
After-Hours Immunization Clinic
The start of the school season is a busy time, so to help working parents have enough time to bring
their kids in for vaccines after regular business hours, the County Immunization Clinic will be hosting three special after-hours vaccination clinics for school-age children’s immunizations.
The walk-in, after-hours clinic will be on
September 9, 10, and 11 from 4:30-6:30 p.m.
To ensure that everyone has access to a healthy start, vaccines can be provided at no cost through
the Vaccines for Children (VFC) Program if a child has Medicaid, is uninsured, their health insurance does not cover all recommended vaccines, or they are American Indian or Alaskan Native. The Buncombe County Immunization Clinic is a VFC provider; you can
find other VFC providers using
For more information: https://www.buncombenc.gov/CivicAlerts.aspx?AID=366