Trump orders review of U.S. childhood vaccine schedule

President Donald Trump issued an executive order on Tuesday directing federal health agencies to review the U.S. childhood vaccine schedule, including a call to split the combined measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine into separate shots.

The move follows years of anti-vaccine rhetoric from Trump and his allies, including his former advisor Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has long claimed—without evidence—that vaccines cause autism. Public health experts warn the order could undermine decades of proven science and reverse progress in preventing deadly diseases. The MMR vaccine has been in use since the 1970s, and studies involving millions of children show it is both safe and highly effective at preventing measles, mumps and rubella.

The executive order does not immediately change vaccine policy but directs agencies like the Department of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to assess whether the current schedule could be modified. Medical groups, including the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Infectious Diseases Society of America, have already pushed back, calling the move dangerous and scientifically unfounded. A 2019 measles outbreak in the U.S. sickened more than 1,200 people, the highest number in nearly three decades, largely due to declining vaccination rates fueled by misinformation.

If implemented, splitting the MMR vaccine could mean more doctor visits, higher costs and potential delays in vaccination, leaving more children unprotected. Public health officials say the order risks eroding trust in vaccines at a time when global measles cases are rising. The World Health Organization has listed vaccine hesitancy as one of the top ten threats to global health. Trump’s order comes as his allies push for broader deregulation of medical products, raising concerns about future interference in public health guidelines.