Under the new order, shots for 11 conditions, including measles, mumps, rubella, and polio, remain the same
President Donald Trump signed an executive order aimed at reducing the number of universally recommended childhood vaccines from 18 to 11, following a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) overhaul on the same.
In January, the CDC, under Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., announced it is cutting the US childhood vaccination schedule from 18 to 11 shots. However, a federal court has blocked the changes.
Under the new Trump order, shots for 11 conditions, including measles, mumps, rubella, and polio, remain the same.
Meanwhile, shots for COVID-19, rotavirus, flu, hepatitis A, hepatitis B, and bacterial meningitis would be decided by parents and doctors. Vaccines for RSV, dengue, and two types of bacterial meningitis would target high-risk groups.
Legal experts predict Trump’s new order could also face court challenges amidst measles cases reaching 35-year highs.
Children’s vaccine schedule recommendations are not mandatory, but many schools and daycares follow them.