CDC Cuts Routine Childhood Vaccine Schedule to 11 Diseases, Shifting Several Shots to Shared Decisions

ATLANTA, Jan. 5 - The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Monday announced a sweeping change to the childhood immunization schedule, cutting the number of diseases for which vaccines are recommended for all children to 11. The change took effect immediately.

Reports differ on the starting point. NBC News put the previous count at 18 diseases, while other outlets said 17. The agency said it compared the U.S. schedule with those of 20 peer countries. Acting CDC Director Jim O'Neill updated the schedule after a review that President Donald Trump ordered.

What changes: Vaccines still recommended for every child cover measles, mumps, rubella, polio, whooping cough, tetanus, diphtheria, Hib, pneumococcal disease, HPV and chickenpox. The HPV recommendation moves from two doses to one.

Shots for RSV, hepatitis A, hepatitis B, dengue and two types of meningococcal disease are now advised only for children in high-risk groups. Rotavirus, flu, COVID-19, meningococcal disease, hepatitis A and hepatitis B fall under shared clinical decision-making, meaning a family and a clinician decide together. In December, the CDC dropped its advice that all newborns get the hepatitis B vaccine within 24 hours of birth.

What stays the same for families: The schedule is a recommendation, not a mandate. States set their own school and day care requirements. A Health and Human Services official said vaccines recommended as of the end of 2025 remain covered by Affordable Care Act plans, Medicaid, the Children's Health Insurance Program and the Vaccines for Children program. The notice said that "All immunizations recommended by the CDC as of Dec. 31, 2025, will continue to be fully covered."

Federal officials said the goal is to rebuild trust in public health after the pandemic. The review pointed to Denmark, whose schedule leaves out several vaccines the U.S. recommends. Anders Peter Hviid of Denmark's Statens Serum Institut wrote that Denmark has a more homogeneous population and universal free health care, and that "Derecommending will likely lead to lower uptake."

Medical groups objected. The American Academy of Pediatrics said on its website that the earlier recommendations are appropriate and cited "robust evidence to support the safety, effectiveness and necessity of U.S. vaccine recommendations." Dr. Jake Scott of Stanford Medicine called it "the most significant weakening of childhood vaccine recommendations."

Why it matters: Parents will see these changes at the pediatrician's office first. Coverage is protected for now, but the guidance shapes what families are told to expect.

How doctors and states respond to the new schedule should become clear in the coming weeks.