Federal health officials rolled back the number of vaccines recommended for children this week, reducing the immunization schedule from 17 shots to 11.
The move marks the latest win for Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in his ongoing effort to reduce the number of shots given to American children. The Trump administration says the revisions will improve clarity and compliance while boosting public confidence in vaccines.
Many public health experts, however, argue the opposite. They call the move “reckless,” noting a lack of evidence supporting such a dramatic revision and warning of heightened public mistrust in vaccines as a result.
Without routine immunization, an increase in vaccine-preventable diseases threatens to disrupt daily lives and may lead to the hospitalization or even death of some children, they caution.
Jim O’Neill, acting director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), signed the memorandum accepting the rollback recommendations on Monday and updated the agency’s immunization schedule, effective immediately, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced in a Monday news release.
Vaccines no longer recommended for all children include hepatitis A and B, rotavirus, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), flu, and meningococcal disease.
These vaccines were bumped down in priority, now recommended only for certain high-risk groups or “based on shared clinical decision making.”
Only vaccines for certain infectious diseases, such as measles, polio, whooping cough, and chicken pox will still be recommended for all children.
But vaccine mandates remain under the authority of the states, not the federal government. Federal recommendations do influence state regulations, but it appears that California will not be so easily swayed.
In a statement, the County of Santa Barbara Health Department said, “The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) and County Health stand by science and are committed to ensuring access to safe, effective vaccines.
“The county will continue to follow evidence-based recommendations set forth by the California Department of Public Health and the West Coast Health Alliance.”
It added that the CDPH bases its vaccine recommendations on guidelines from “trusted medical professional organizations,” including the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).
On Monday, AAP President Andrew Racine, MD, Ph.D, rebuked the vaccine removal, calling the move “dangerous and unnecessary.” The AAP will continue to publish its own childhood vaccine recommendations, including maintaining the shots the CDC just demoted.
Racine accused the HHS of abandoning established procedures for vaccine policy recommendations, which historically included the careful review of new data and evidence by immunologists and pediatricians.
“Today’s decision, which was based on a brief review of other countries’ practices, upends this deliberate scientific process,” he said on Monday.
On December 5, 2025, President Trump directed the HHS to review the vaccine schedules of other wealthy countries, such as Denmark, Germany, and Japan, and tailor the United States’ practices to mimic them.
“President Trump directed us to examine how other developed nations protect their children and to take action if they are doing better,” Health Secretary RFK Jr. said.
“After an exhaustive review of the evidence, we are aligning the U.S. childhood vaccine schedule with international consensus while strengthening transparency and informed consent. This decision protects children, respects families, and rebuilds trust in public health.”
However, public health experts noted that the U.S. vaccine schedule was already nearly identical to those of Canada, Britain, Australia, and Germany. Where it differs from other wealthy countries can be tied to differences such as population, size, disease prevalence, vaccine availability, and other situational factors — not concerns over vaccine safety.
“The United States is not Denmark, and there is no reason to impose the Danish immunization schedule on America’s families,” Racine said. “America is a unique country, and Denmark’s population, public health infrastructure, and disease-risk differ greatly from our own.”
As noted by experts, for example, rotavirus once led to the hospitalization of up to 70,000 American children a year, before the vaccine was routinely administered.
Despite such evidence, in recent years, trust in routine immunizations has eroded. Measles and whooping cough have made a comeback — in 2025, the U.S. reported more cases of measles than it had in any year since 1993. The country is even on track to losing its official measles elimination status, which it has held since 2000.
It’s been a downward trend. Federal vaccine advisers also recently recommended that vaccines against COVID-19 only be administered after consultation with a healthcare professional.
As for the newest changes, federal health officials assured that they would not affect access to the vaccines or their coverage by insurance companies.
