CHICKENPOX SHOTS MANDATORY FOR SOME KIDS

Chickenpox. It's a disease that stirs memories of boring days spent in bed, the monotony broken only by occasional broth feedings and Mother's shouted orders to stop scratching.

But today there's a vaccine. And, as of Monday, every child who attends a Missouri licensed day-care center, preschool or Head Start program has to have it.

The shots are available at doctors' offices and public health departments. Children who are 16 to 59 months old will have to be vaccinated or have reliable proof they have been infected previously.

Chickenpox can spread like wildfire, particularly in day-care centers where children are close to each other and where signs of the disease may not be visible until it's too late.