Assessing state immunization requirements for healthcare workers and patients.

Background: Laws requiring vaccination for school entry have resulted in high coverage and reduced disease incidence; however, few data exist on the use of similar laws in other settings. This study reviews laws regulating vaccination of healthcare workers (HCWs) and patients in selected healthcare delivery settings.

Methods: From September 2004 to June 2005, Lexis-Nexis and other web-based databases were searched for laws pertaining to HCW and patient vaccination in 50 states and Washington DC.