Trump signs order calling for fewer childhood vaccines and 'more vaccine flexibility'
President Donald Trump signed an executive order "calling for more vaccine flexibility and research" and fewer childhood vaccinations, in addition to splitting the childhood measles, mumps and rubella vaccine into three shots and delivering them at separate medical visits.
"You have the MMR, we want it in three separate vaccinations, given at separate times. Together there could be a possibility they're quite lethal and separately, it looks like they are not at all lethal, but just very effective," said Trump from the Oval Office as he signed the order.
The MMR vaccine is not lethal, and medical research shows no health benefit or reduced risk from splitting it. In contrast, separating the shots increases injection pain, leaves children unprotected longer, and lowers overall vaccination rates, according to experts.
Manufacturers also do not produce standalone measles, mumps or rubella vaccines for routine use in the United States.
Trump issued his order months after trying to slash the childhood vaccine schedule from 18 to 11. That move was blocked by a judge in March.
Dr. Michael Osterholm, executive director of the Vaccine Integrity Project, an initiative of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, was critical of the announcement. He said parents deserve clear, evidence-based guidance about how to protect their children, not competing recommendations issued through political processes.
"Parents should continue to rely on the evidence-based immunization recommendations developed by trusted medical and public health experts, including the American Academy of Pediatrics," said Osterholm. "Today's Executive Order does not change the underlying scientific evidence supporting childhood immunization. That data has been built over decades - through large clinical trials, real-world effectiveness studies and continuous safety monitoring involving millions of children."
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has a long history of linking vaccines to autism, announced in January, that the HHS would revise its childhood immunization schedule.
At the time, public health experts said these changes were at the expense of children's health. Dr. Andrew D. Racine, president of the American Academy of Pediatrics, said the changes were "dangerous and unnecessary,” in a statement shared on Jan. 6.
Kennedy also removed all 17 members of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's expert vaccine panel and filled many of the positions with people who have been vaccine skeptics or questioned COVID-19 vaccine mandates.
In March, a federal judge blocked the vaccine schedule changes, saying proper scientific procedures were not followed. The judge also suspended 13 new members appointed by Kennedy to the CDC vaccine advisory committee (ACIP) and voided their prior votes.
In addition to votes on the hepatitis B and COVID-19 vaccines, the ACIP voted to no longer recommend the MMRV vaccine, a combination vaccine that targets measles, mumps, rubella and varicella (chickenpox) for children younger than 4.
Two months later, Trump signed an executive order directing federal health agencies to review and align the U.S. childhood vaccine schedule with recommendations from peer developed nations.
"Parents can still choose to give their children all of the vaccinations if they wish," Trump said on Aug. 10 before signing the order. "They will be covered by insurance."
Contributing: Francesca Chambers, USA TODAY; Reuters