ROCHESTER, Minn. - Mayo Clinic is treating more and more COVID-19 patients everyday, so some people might be hesitant to go there. Health officials say they're still seeing fewer parents bringing in their children for those routine appointments, but it could actually be worse if you're not bringing your children in to get their regular vaccines right now.

Dr. Marcie Billings is a pediatrician at Mayo Clinic and she said it's now even more important to make sure kids are up to date on immunizations. Unfortunately, the pandemic is turning people away from those routine well-child appointments. She explained there are precautions in place to protect families from COVID-19. It all starts with a screening process two days before the appointment. "We are practicing social distancing within our clinics, we are doing enhanced cleaning measures, there's universal masking for both the healthcare workers, staff, as well as the patients - aside from those kids under 2," said Dr. Billings.

Dr. Billings said it's so important that parents are aware how critical it is to still have children vaccinated right now, more so than before. "What we don't want is in addition to a current national pandemic, is to start having issues with vaccine preventable diseases," explained Dr. Billings. "That is a real possibility if we don't get these kids immunized and immunized on time." Dr. Billings said they still need to see how your child is growing to make sure they're on track with their age. So those routine well-child visits are just as critical as immunizations.

If you have any concerns at all, you are encouraged to reach out to your pediatrician.