President Donald Trump has signed an executive order that revises the recommended childhood vaccine schedule, directs new vaccine research, and seeks to increase "parental choice." The guidance substantially reduces the number of vaccines recommended for all children, from 18 diseases down to 11.
Vaccines for rotavirus, meningococcal disease, the flu, and COVID-19 are among those no longer recommended for all children under the new guidance. The order also includes a recommendation to separate the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine into three individual shots, though such single shots are not currently commercially available.
The executive order, issued on a Monday, primarily offers recommendations. As noted by The Washington Post, many states already do not rely solely on federal vaccine recommendations. However, the changes are expected to increase confusion regarding vaccine safety and could create administrative hurdles for parents.
Trump has previously expressed skepticism about vaccines, frequently promoting unsubstantiated theories linking childhood immunizations to autism. On Monday, he commented that childhood vaccine doses are "the size of a bottle of soda poured into a little child’s body," a claim that health officials state is inaccurate.
While the executive order does not implement sweeping changes to vaccine access, its issuance from the Oval Office concerning vaccine policy is a notable development. The administration's attempts to influence vaccine policy at the state level, alongside previous actions by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., could further impact the public health consensus in the United States.