Vaccination Chaos...

[NateM 0]

NOTE: Because this post turned out longer than anticipated, I've put most of main questions in italics so they don't get "lost in the shuffle," for lack of a better term... Perhaps I'll add bold to some of the most important questions as well.

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I'm in the process of helping my wife file for AOS, and just came across something unexpected... Since she arrived on a K-1, and had her medical exam less than a year ago, we supposedly only have to include her vaccination supplement. But taking a closer look at this document (the DS-3025) has revealed some confusing things.

1). The doctor only gave her a total of two vaccinations: Td (Tetanus-Diphtheria), and MMR (Measles-Mumps-Rubella). For the other dozen or so listed, he marked them as "Not Age Appropriate" (even though some of them, such as Hepatitis A/B and HPV, can be given to adults). The only other thing he marked in this section is "VH" for "Varicella History" (which I think is just a fancy way of saying she once had chicken pox).

2). The doctor put a check in the box next to "Vaccine History Incomplete." He also checked/marked the very next box, which says, "Applicant may be eligible for blanket waiver(s) because vaccination(s) not medically appropriate (as Indicated Above).

In regards to the first issue... I initially thought my wife may have received some of the other vaccines in the past, but she says she can't remember if she had any as a child, and that in Thailand they don't keep good records of such things. So one thing I'm wondering is, does anyone know which vaccinations are truly required for AOS? (I did a search in the forum on this, but came up with several conflicting answers... If it is of any help, my wife is 31).

In regards to the second issue... I have no idea what a blanket waiver is (Can anyone tell me?). Also, I came across an interesting post about a related AOS experience. I've put the relevant content below the link, so no need to click on it unless you want to read the whole thing:

( http://www.visajourney.com/reviews/index.p...1&dfilter=5 , 2nd from top)

"A few more minutes and a few more simple questions, and he said that there was only 1 problem. The vaccination form filled out by the doctor in Thailand, the shots were complete, but for some reason, Don says, the doctors always mark the 'Incomplete' box on the bottom. And that is a snag. Fortunately for us, there was a civil doctor set up in an office right next door to the USCIS (coincidence? Maybe....) and he sent us over there to get the shot transferred to a new sheet. That literally took us 10 minutes. We went back to his office, he took the sheet, and congratulated us, telling us he would tell the computer this afternoon to start card production. He gave us a sheet reminding us that we will have to submit another form in 21 months to get the 10 year card, but we were out of there at 8:50. What a great day. No complaints, just make sure your immunization form (we used the 3xxx form provided by the Thai doc) is marked 'Complete'. If not, get it transferred to a new one. You don't need any physical, and you probably don't need any more shots, you just need it transferred to a sheet marked 'Complete'. All-in-all a happy experience."

So, maybe marking the "Incomplete" box is common practice in Thailand... I'm not sure at this point. But I'm pretty sure I won't have the same luck as the couple above and find a civil doctor sitting next door waiting to save the day. On top of that, I came across another statement in a post by the almighty Captain Ewok of the 'Forbidden Forest' himself (VJ Admin): "If the beneficiary's vaccinations were COMPLETED as part of the visa process, IT IS NOT NECESSARY TO INCLUDE FORM I-693 IN THE AOS SUBMISSION" ( http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=101202 ). Given that I'm unsure whether mine is actually considered "complete," I'm left confused whether this applies to me or not... And now, one or two posts down from Ewok's post, I see a link to another post by our furry friend that seems to contradict the first one! (No offense to the guy at all - he seems to have a good sense of humor, and it can't be easy keeping track of all these immigration rules - but can you see the irony here? ).

Needless to say, I'm confused. My wife's I-94 expires June 21st - about 6 days from now - and I really wanted to express mail the AOS packet to ensure it arrives beforehand so she doesn't go "Out of Status." But in light of all the above, if I send the packet out with the vaccination supplement as is, I'm worried that I might get an RFE asking for an I-693, or have complications at our AOS interview. So I guess my main question is, which of the two scenarios above would be better? (Filing on time but risking a possible RFE or complications down the road, OR... Verifying the vaccinations are all taken care of, perhaps transferring them to an I-693, but consequentially filing the AOS paperwork a few weeks late causing my wife to temporarily go "Out of Status"?) I'm tempted to go with the first option, as I'm on a very tight budget at the moment, and really can't afford more doctor fees. Plus, I'm not sure if getting an RFE is really such a terrible thing... (Is it?) Is it just an annoyance that slows things down, or is there more to an RFE that I'm missing..?).

Sorry for the long post. Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated.

[Old Dominion 26]

Go with the first option and receive the NOA1. When you get the proper vaccination result, send it along with a cover note referring to the NOA1, and it will be matched up with your application. That's how I would do it.

[winifredbee 1]

I just went through this whole thing. I sent my AOS in on the 4th and my Hubby's I-94 expires on the 25th. He got the same vaccinations that you mentioned and the doctor filled out the paperwork the same but I think that he may need one more tetanus shot in a few months. All I know is they cashed my check last week and I am hoping for my NOA1 this week. If you file this month join us on the AOS June Filers thread. We have all been figuring out the details together. Good Luck!! I think your on the right track. Your post was long was there another question?

[edp333 9]

I would suggest calling Dr. Arnold in Texas to transcribed the I-693, Phone Number: 512 444-3131. Leave a message and one of the workers will call you back. He can tell you what vaccinations are needed and the cost is only $35.

[emi82 0]

My civil surgon marked the same:

Vaccine History Incomplete

Applicant may be eligible for blanket waiver(s) because vaccination(s) not medically appropriate (as Indicated Above)

He did that b/c i got only first shoots of MMR and Hepatitis. After one month i got another doze and he marked that "completed". I've sent the first one (with incomplete) and he told me that i migh need the second one on my interview. My case was transfered to Califironia so i hope that i m not gonna have one. I m still waiting for aproval but i m not woory about vaccination, i m more consered about that seald enveloped left at the airport which might got lost

[Urge To Race 2]

Call any civil surgeon and their office can tell you what vaccines are needed based on gender and age. Then you will know if her vaccinations are truly complete. If they are, then they just need to be transcribed to the I693 (not a full medical, just a vaccination record). If you need more shots, then you can get those and then the I693, but that might take time.

I would send in the DS3025 and then get the I693. If you get an RFE for the Vaccinations being incomplete, send it in. If not, have it for your interview if called.

NOTE: Because this post turned out longer than anticipated, I've put most of main questions in italics so they don't get "lost in the shuffle," for lack of a better term... Perhaps I'll add bold to some of the most important questions as well.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I'm in the process of helping my wife file for AOS, and just came across something unexpected... Since she arrived on a K-1, and had her medical exam less than a year ago, we supposedly only have to include her vaccination supplement. But taking a closer look at this document (the DS-3025) has revealed some confusing things.

1). The doctor only gave her a total of two vaccinations: Td (Tetanus-Diphtheria), and MMR (Measles-Mumps-Rubella). For the other dozen or so listed, he marked them as "Not Age Appropriate" (even though some of them, such as Hepatitis A/B and HPV, can be given to adults). The only other thing he marked in this section is "VH" for "Varicella History" (which I think is just a fancy way of saying she once had chicken pox).

2). The doctor put a check in the box next to "Vaccine History Incomplete." He also checked/marked the very next box, which says, "Applicant may be eligible for blanket waiver(s) because vaccination(s) not medically appropriate (as Indicated Above).

In regards to the first issue... I initially thought my wife may have received some of the other vaccines in the past, but she says she can't remember if she had any as a child, and that in Thailand they don't keep good records of such things. So one thing I'm wondering is, does anyone know which vaccinations are truly required for AOS? (I did a search in the forum on this, but came up with several conflicting answers... If it is of any help, my wife is 31).

In regards to the second issue... I have no idea what a blanket waiver is (Can anyone tell me?). Also, I came across an interesting post about a related AOS experience. I've put the relevant content below the link, so no need to click on it unless you want to read the whole thing:

( http://www.visajourney.com/reviews/index.p...1&dfilter=5 , 2nd from top)

"A few more minutes and a few more simple questions, and he said that there was only 1 problem. The vaccination form filled out by the doctor in Thailand, the shots were complete, but for some reason, Don says, the doctors always mark the 'Incomplete' box on the bottom. And that is a snag. Fortunately for us, there was a civil doctor set up in an office right next door to the USCIS (coincidence? Maybe....) and he sent us over there to get the shot transferred to a new sheet. That literally took us 10 minutes. We went back to his office, he took the sheet, and congratulated us, telling us he would tell the computer this afternoon to start card production. He gave us a sheet reminding us that we will have to submit another form in 21 months to get the 10 year card, but we were out of there at 8:50. What a great day. No complaints, just make sure your immunization form (we used the 3xxx form provided by the Thai doc) is marked 'Complete'. If not, get it transferred to a new one. You don't need any physical, and you probably don't need any more shots, you just need it transferred to a sheet marked 'Complete'. All-in-all a happy experience."

So, maybe marking the "Incomplete" box is common practice in Thailand... I'm not sure at this point. But I'm pretty sure I won't have the same luck as the couple above and find a civil doctor sitting next door waiting to save the day. On top of that, I came across another statement in a post by the almighty Captain Ewok of the 'Forbidden Forest' himself (VJ Admin): "If the beneficiary's vaccinations were COMPLETED as part of the visa process, IT IS NOT NECESSARY TO INCLUDE FORM I-693 IN THE AOS SUBMISSION" ( http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=101202 ). Given that I'm unsure whether mine is actually considered "complete," I'm left confused whether this applies to me or not... And now, one or two posts down from Ewok's post, I see a link to another post by our furry friend that seems to contradict the first one! (No offense to the guy at all - he seems to have a good sense of humor, and it can't be easy keeping track of all these immigration rules - but can you see the irony here? ).

Needless to say, I'm confused. My wife's I-94 expires June 21st - about 6 days from now - and I really wanted to express mail the AOS packet to ensure it arrives beforehand so she doesn't go "Out of Status." But in light of all the above, if I send the packet out with the vaccination supplement as is, I'm worried that I might get an RFE asking for an I-693, or have complications at our AOS interview. So I guess my main question is, which of the two scenarios above would be better? (Filing on time but risking a possible RFE or complications down the road, OR... Verifying the vaccinations are all taken care of, perhaps transferring them to an I-693, but consequentially filing the AOS paperwork a few weeks late causing my wife to temporarily go "Out of Status"?) I'm tempted to go with the first option, as I'm on a very tight budget at the moment, and really can't afford more doctor fees. Plus, I'm not sure if getting an RFE is really such a terrible thing... (Is it?) Is it just an annoyance that slows things down, or is there more to an RFE that I'm missing..?).

Sorry for the long post. Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated.

[JeremyR 8]

So one thing I'm wondering is, does anyone know which vaccinations are truly required for AOS?

If you actually go through the vaccination requirements chart (this one is from London embassy but the requirements are the same globally AFAIK) then you will see that things like the Hep A & B and HPV vaccines as well as many of the others are only required if you're inside certain State Dept mandated age brackets. In fact, the only ones marked as required for adults over 18 are:

Tdap (10yrs to 64yrs)

MMR (12mo to 64yrs)

Varicella (12mo+)

HPV (women only, 11yrs to 26yrs - note the low upper age boundary)

Varicella is not required where the immigrant has a history of chicken pox, hence the 'VH' annotation should be enough to pass that requirement.

So if your wife is 27 or older, she's good to go, I think

If she's inside the age band for HPV, she may be RFE'd for it but then, I should have been RFE'd for a missing varicella jab but it never happened

Edited June 15, 2009 by JeremyR

[Eric-Pris 1,607]

I would suggest calling Dr. Arnold in Texas to transcribed the I-693, Phone Number: 512 444-3131. Leave a message and one of the workers will call you back. He can tell you what vaccinations are needed and the cost is only $35.

It's now $35?

I'm not complaining, it's still cheap, but funny how it went from $15 a year ago to $20 to $30 and now $35. I guess business is good.

[Nich-Nick 3,354]

This is the latest immunization requirements from the CDC who makes the rules. http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/PDF/wk/mm5753-Immunization.pdf

If you read the fine print in each footnote you will get alot of specific information. Like Hepatitis is recommended for people with close exposure or who work in healthcare fields...things like that.

Saying "not age appropriate" is basically a tick mark for OK because it's not required of her.

Having chickenpox is another A-OK for the varicella shot.

Our DS 3025 was exactly as you described yours. It said incomplete and the blanket waiver bit. That is standard and I read why, but forgot. We sent ithe DS3025 with AOS without any further shots or transcribing to an I-693 because all shots were either recorded on the form or were marked not age appropriate. We got a green card with no RFE.

[M.O 6]

ur right is a chaos...

they lost my medical exam, the 1st one and i made another one last week co si got a RFE in the mail for it...

They needed 6 freaking months to tell me my medical is lost and missing..

And i did everything all over again and i remember i got last year in july the first dose of HPV vaccine(up to 26 years) and i had to had the other 2 doses by now but i didnt want to cos its unsafe and i dont want it, but its a requirement for immigrants,cos this law came out under Bush administration and the Civil Surgeon tells me last week i have to have the second dose even if is almost 1 year from the 1st and thats not good my GYN told me and i refused it,see what happens now...They treat us like lab rats or whatever u call them...

Why USC(women) have the choice to have the vaccine HPV,and most of them dont have it cos they think its unsafe and there are some dozens of deaths cos of it but for immigrants its a requirement to inject anything in our bodies to see how the vaccine reacts...

And i was transferred to CSC where its suppose to be faster and without interview...Bull@#$

[NateM 0]

Thanks so much to everyone who replied - it means a lot. This truly is a great forum .

JeremyR - it sounds like my wife has had everything you listed that is applicable, with the exception of Tdap... She was given a regular Td shot in place of that (I think the difference between the two is that Tdap also protects against Pertussis, a.k.a Whooping Cough). So perhaps a vaccination for Pertussis is the only thing left to get, if it's required.

olesea - sorry to hear what you're having to go through. That does seem very unfair...

Everyone else - thanks again. Judging by the replies and a PM I was sent, it sounds like the majority think it would be best to send the DS-3025 as is and see what happens rather than filing late. So, I think that's what I'll do (though anyone else is welcome to reply if they see something that's been overlooked).

[P&R 1]

We ended up doing concurrent filing of the 130 485 etc ... but had run out of time for completion of a full medical to get the 693 filled out. So instead after advice we opted to get all the package together & post off so it would reach them & get filed before or on the expiration date of the I-94.

Saving any possible problems with filing after expiration of the I-94 and giving us time to get the medical done.After

receiving NOA1s for the 130 , 485 etc about a week later we got a *request for initial evidence* asking to get the medical/693 completed.

This gave us extra time to get the medical squared away & still be in status regarding the I-94 ...

[Eric-Pris 1,607]

ur right is a chaos...

they lost my medical exam, the 1st one and i made another one last week co si got a RFE in the mail for it...

They needed 6 freaking months to tell me my medical is lost and missing..

And i did everything all over again and i remember i got last year in july the first dose of HPV vaccine(up to 26 years) and i had to had the other 2 doses by now but i didnt want to cos its unsafe and i dont want it, but its a requirement for immigrants,cos this law came out under Bush administration and the Civil Surgeon tells me last week i have to have the second dose even if is almost 1 year from the 1st and thats not good my GYN told me and i refused it,see what happens now...They treat us like lab rats or whatever u call them...

Why USC(women) have the choice to have the vaccine HPV,and most of them dont have it cos they think its unsafe and there are some dozens of deaths cos of it but for immigrants its a requirement to inject anything in our bodies to see how the vaccine reacts...

And i was transferred to CSC where its suppose to be faster and without interview...Bull@#$

Sorry, but if you don't like the rules, you don't have to play the game. Nobody is forcing you to do anything. There is always another option.

Edited June 16, 2009 by Eric-Pris

[M.O 6]

ur right is a chaos...

they lost my medical exam, the 1st one and i made another one last week co si got a RFE in the mail for it...

They needed 6 freaking months to tell me my medical is lost and missing..

And i did everything all over again and i remember i got last year in july the first dose of HPV vaccine(up to 26 years) and i had to had the other 2 doses by now but i didnt want to cos its unsafe and i dont want it, but its a requirement for immigrants,cos this law came out under Bush administration and the Civil Surgeon tells me last week i have to have the second dose even if is almost 1 year from the 1st and thats not good my GYN told me and i refused it,see what happens now...They treat us like lab rats or whatever u call them...

Why USC(women) have the choice to have the vaccine HPV,and most of them dont have it cos they think its unsafe and there are some dozens of deaths cos of it but for immigrants its a requirement to inject anything in our bodies to see how the vaccine reacts...

And i was transferred to CSC where its suppose to be faster and without interview...Bull@#$

Sorry, but if you don't like the rules, you don't have to play the game. Nobody is forcing you to do anything. There is always another option.

i was just saying how the rules are freaking crazy...and u want it or not u have to do it...

dont try to be a smart #### right now Eric-Pris...