HHS Press Office Announces Immediate Update to Childhood Immunization Schedule
Dear PERK Community,
The movement has entered the new year with outstanding momentum.
Today, the HHS Press Office released an official statement announcing that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has acted on a Presidential Memorandum directing an update to the U.S. childhood and adolescent immunization schedule. The action follows a comprehensive scientific and international review and is formalized through an official CDC Decision Memorandum.
As a result, the number of vaccines recommended for routine administration to all children has been reduced from 17 to 11, bringing U.S. policy more closely in line with other high-income, peer nations — while preserving access to all FDA-licensed vaccines.
The changes are effective immediately.
What Prompted the Change
The Presidential Memorandum directed HHS and CDC to evaluate whether the U.S. schedule reflects:
• Current scientific evidence
• International best practices
• Transparency and informed consent
• Public trust and vaccine uptake outcomes
The review found that the United States previously recommended significantly more routine childhood vaccines than peer countries, without achieving higher overall vaccination rates.
According to today’s HHS press statement, the updated schedule is intended to focus routine vaccination on the most serious childhood diseases, while allowing greater flexibility for individualized care. [1]
“This update reflects our commitment to evidence-based medicine, transparency, and restoring public confidence in public-health recommendations,” HHS stated in today’s press release.
What Has Changed
The updated CDC framework now clearly organizes vaccines into three categories — all of which remain covered by insurance with no cost sharing:
Recommended for All Children
Recommended for Certain High-Risk Groups or Populations
Shared Clinical Decision-Making Between Parents and Clinicians
No vaccines have been removed from availability. The change affects how vaccines are recommended, not whether families can access them.
The Decision Memorandum explains that this structure supports more precise, risk-based care and strengthens informed consent.
“Public-health guidance works best when it respects clinical judgment, parental decision-making, and evolving scientific evidence,” the memorandum notes.
Scientific Leadership and Oversight
The review process and policy shift reflect long-standing calls for reform from leading medical experts, including Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, Dr. Marty Makary, and Dr. Mehmet Oz, all of whom have emphasized the need for proportionate, transparent, and patient-centered public-health policy. [2]
HHS also confirmed that the CDC will continue long-term safety monitoring, international comparisons, and periodic re-evaluation of the schedule as new data emerges.
Effective Immediately
HHS confirmed that the revised childhood and adolescent immunization schedule is effective immediately and applies to all federal guidance, clinical recommendations, and coverage determinations going forward.
The department emphasized that this action represents an evolution in public-health policy — prioritizing clarity, trust, and science — while maintaining protection against serious childhood diseases.
I highly recommend reading the excellent and informative memo.
With gratitude,
Amy Bohn
PERK President