Texas Receives Immunization Award
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 30, 2009
Texas was named the most improved state in childhood immunizations today by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. San Antonio/Bexar County was named the most improved city/county. The awards were presented at the CDC’s 2009 National Immunization Conference in Dallas. The campaign behind the successful movement, “Vaccines Build Your Child’s Health,” was created by advocacy and cause-related marketing agency Interlex on behalf of the Texas Department of State Health Services. Interlex served as an agency of record for DSHS and managed the campaign from 2002 to 2008, when its contract came to an end.
Texas increased 13.5 percentage points in childhood immunizations coverage rates from 2004 to 2008, based on National Immunization Survey data of children 19 through 35 months of age. San Antonio/Bexar County improved 11.3 percentage points.
“Our work on the issue of Immunizations and more broadly for the Texas Department of State Health Services,” states Interlex President & CEO Rudy Ruiz, “is the cornerstone of our ongoing expertise in public health advocacy. It’s wonderful to see our positive branding of vaccines at a time when they were under fire, and our multicultural campaigns which targeted parents and providers, have a powerful and lasting effect on children’s health.”
Today, Interlex continues to grow its health advocacy practice through its work as agency of record for Baltimore-based Care Improvement Plus, a Medicare Advantage Special Needs Plan, the American Cancer Society, and the Pan American Development Foundation (PADF), a hemispheric non-profit organization affiliated with the Organization of American States. Specifically, with the PADF, Interlex is currently developing a cause-related campaign bringing together public and private partners to promote and facilitate increased childhood vaccinations throughout the Western Hemisphere.
“Our experience serving Texas in the area of Immunizations inspired us to continue to do this work that is vital for the future of children not only here but around the world,” Ruiz says. “Globally, over 1 million children under the age of five die each year from preventable diseases. If we can help our clients change that for the better through public awareness, education and branded behavior change, then we are being true to our calling and our mission as a unique agency devoted to making the world a better place.”