President Donald Trump signed an executive order on August 10, 2026, titled “Delivering Gold Standard Childhood Vaccine Recommendations for Americans,” narrowing the recommended childhood vaccine list.
The order reduces the number of vaccines recommended for all children from 17 to 11, marking one of the most significant changes to childhood immunisation guidance in decades.
Children would still be immunised against measles, mumps, rubella, diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, polio, Haemophilus influenzae type B, pneumococcal disease, HPV, and varicella under the new framework.
Vaccines for RSV and hepatitis A and B have been moved into a high-risk and shared-decision category, meaning they would no longer be universally recommended for all children.
The order also advises separating the combined MMR vaccine into three individual shots, a position that runs contrary to broad scientific consensus on vaccine administration.
HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is directed to present the president with plans to improve vaccine research and expand parental options through the department’s Task Force on Safer Childhood Vaccines.
States with existing school vaccination mandates are advised to consider updating their laws to align with the revised recommendations under the new executive order.
The Department of Justice has been directed to review whether states are properly honouring vaccine exemptions tied to parental authority, disability, religion, or medical necessity.
The Trump administration’s efforts to reshape childhood vaccine policy have faced significant legal resistance, including a March ruling by a federal judge in Massachusetts that blocked major parts of the HHS vaccination agenda.
The American Academy of Pediatrics swiftly condemned the order, with AAP President Andrew Racine, M.D., Ph.D., calling it “not only disheartening but dangerous,” warning that federal leaders are “once again spreading misleading claims.”
Racine said dozens of studies involving millions of people show there is no link between vaccines and autism, “yet federal leaders continue to promote this outdated, disproven idea to scare families.”
American Medical Association president Bobby Mukkamala, M.D., stated that “there is no credible scientific evidence to support changing the current childhood vaccine schedule,” directly contradicting the administration’s position.
The AAP and other medical organisations have already filed a lawsuit against HHS seeking to reverse earlier changes to CDC childhood vaccine recommendations made in January 2026.
Measles cases have reached a 35-year high in the United States, raising alarm among public health officials as the executive order further loosens federal immunisation guidance.