More Hawaii kids are starting school without up-to-date vaccinations, and health officials say that raises the risk of disease outbreaks — bad news for schools and especially for kids too young or too sick to be vaccinated themselves.

The state health department found that the share of kindergartners missing required vaccine doses rose from last year's level, and the share of seventh graders not fully up to date jumped even more sharply, now topping half of that grade.

A bigger share of students are getting religious exemptions, which is a major driver of the gap.

Officials stress that vaccines protect not just the individual child but the whole school community, since kids spend all day in close contact with each other.

Outlook: If exemption rates keep climbing, Hawaii schools could become more vulnerable to outbreaks of preventable diseases.