US Vaccine Policy Shifts Amid Declining Rates and Measles Resurgence
- Federal vaccine policy has shifted under the Trump administration to fewer recommended routine childhood immunizations, increased individual decision-making, and lowered trust in federal health officials, KFF reported.
- In June 2025, Kennedy fired and replaced all members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, the expert panel that provides evidence-based recommendations to the Centers for Disease...
- The most significant federal changes arrived in January 2026, when HHS adopted a substantially revised childhood vaccination schedule.
Federal vaccine policy has shifted under the Trump administration to fewer recommended routine childhood immunizations, increased individual decision-making, and lowered trust in federal health officials, KFF reported. The policy overhaul coincides with declining childhood vaccination rates, rising school exemptions, and the worst measles outbreak in the United States in 35 years.
Department of Health and Human Services Overhauls Childhood Vaccine Schedule
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has spearheaded the policy overhaul. In June 2025, Kennedy fired and replaced all members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, the expert panel that provides evidence-based recommendations to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC subsequently revoked recommendations for routine COVID-19 vaccines for healthy children and pregnant women. In December 2025, ACIP members voted to end a 34-year-old recommendation that all newborns receive the hepatitis B vaccine within 24 hours of birth.
The most significant federal changes arrived in January 2026, when HHS adopted a substantially revised childhood vaccination schedule. The schedule reduced targeted diseases from 17 to 11 and routine vaccines from 13 to 7. USA TODAY reported that a federal judge temporarily blocked the revised HHS recommendations in March 2026, and the administration is appealing that ruling.
In August 2026, President Donald Trump released an executive order presenting his own set of vaccine recommendations that reduced the number of routine vaccines and calling for the measles, mumps, and rubella shot to be separated into three separate vaccines once they are available, according to USA TODAY. Medical groups oppose the separation of combination shots.
States Delink From Federal Guidance as Measles Outbreaks Spread
In response to federal changes, states have begun separating vaccination requirements from federal recommendations. As of August 2026, 30 states and Washington, D.C., announced they would no longer follow CDC and ACIP recommendations for one or more childhood vaccines, with 27 states delinking entirely. States are relying instead on prior recommendations, state rules, and guidance from entities such as the American Academy of Pediatrics.
At the same time, childhood vaccination coverage has dropped. Data show that 95% across all three vaccines for the 2019-2020 school year was the prior level. Meanwhile, the share of kindergarteners with exemptions from one or more school vaccination requirements rose to 4.2%, up from 2.5% in 2019-2020.
A vaccination rate of at least 95% is required to prevent community transmission of measles. Thirty-nine states reported MMR coverage below 95%, and 18 states fell below 90%. As of October 1, 2026, the U.S. reported nearly 3,887 confirmed cases of measles, exceeding the total for all of 2025 and marking the highest annual count since 1991. South Carolina, Utah, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Virginia recorded the largest outbreaks.
CDC Trust Drops as Vaccine Policy Sparks Political Debate
Public trust in the CDC remains low following the revisions. KFF polling indicates that fewer than half, or 47%, trust the agency at least a fair amount to provide reliable vaccine information, down more than 10 percentage points since the beginning of the second Trump administration. About four in ten voters approve of the administration’s handling of vaccine policy at 38%, while six in ten disapprove at 61%.
The measles resurgence has also entered the political arena. USA TODAY reported that Democratic congressional candidates with medical backgrounds are campaigning against federal health policies. Richard Pan, a doctor and former state senator running for a California congressional seat, and Annie Andrews, a pediatrician running against Sen. Darline Graham, R-South Carolina, are positioning themselves as checks on Secretary Kennedy.
Attributing the measles resurgence to President Trump or Secretary Kennedy fundamentally misrepresents when and why the resurgence began.
HHS Statement
HHS stated that childhood vaccination rates began declining years before current officials took office, citing pandemic-era disruptions and school closures. During a September 2026 conference speech hosted by Children’s Health Defense, Secretary Kennedy defended his focus on vaccine safety research and informed decision-making.