President Trump Issues Executive Order to Update U.S. Childhood Vaccine Schedule

The Trump administration is looking to pare the number of childhood vaccines down from 17 to 11 in keeping with an HHS assessment.

Matt MacKenzie

June 3, 2026

2 min read

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Key Highlights

- The executive order directs CDC and ACIP to review a 2025 scientific assessment proposing fewer childhood vaccines.
- The assessment suggests reducing recommended vaccines from 17 to 11, a move criticized by public health advocates.
- At least 23 states and Washington, D.C. plan to follow existing vaccination recommendations despite the review.
- A federal judge's ruling in March maintains the current vaccine schedule, rendering the order largely symbolic for now.
- Opponents worry about the implications of replacing U.S.-specific vaccine guidance with international standards.

President Donald Trump issued an executive order that directs the CDC and ACIP to “review a December 2025 scientific assessment from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) that called for fewer recommended childhood vaccines and to take ‘any appropriate steps’ to update the US childhood vaccine schedule to align with its findings.” CIDRAP has the news.

The executive order states that the “scientific assessment, with its proposed updates to the categories of the vaccine schedule, is acknowledged as a guiding resource for the Federal Government.” The assessment called for “paring the number of recommended vaccines for U.S. children from 17 to 11,” which is a change widely criticized by public health groups. At least 23 states and Washington, DC have said they will follow other recommendations.

The federal childhood immunization recommendations that were in place before June 2025 remain in place currently thanks to a federal judge’s ruling in March. The executive order is purely rhetorical for the time being.

Opponents of the Trump administration’s vaccine policies remain concerned, however. This marks the second time the administration has “attempted to unilaterally substitute vaccine guidance from other countries to replace the U.S. vaccine schedule which was developed for the specific needs of the U.S. population.”