Trump pushes overhaul of US childhood vaccine policy

US President Donald Trump on Monday signed an executive order seeking sweeping changes to childhood vaccine policy, including fewer recommended immunizations and more separate appointments for children to receive them.

The order calls for the combined measles , mumps and rubella vaccine, known as MMR, to be separated into three single-disease shots. It also advocates administering childhood immunizations at separate medical visits whenever possible.

Trump described the move as a "major victory for parents rights, religious and constitutional rights, and for the gold standard science."

The order says the federal government will support 11 core childhood vaccinations and advises states and territories to review vaccine requirements for school enrollment.

However, Washington cannot directly determine most school vaccine mandates, which are largely set by individual states. On those requirements, Trump's order is therefore primarily a recommendation.

The order also directs the Health and Human Services Department to improve vaccine research and develop a plan to make separate measles, mumps and rubella vaccines available in the US. Such single-antigen vaccines are not currently licensed there.

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had already sought in January to remove vaccines against six of 17 diseases from the childhood schedule. A federal judge later blocked those changes while legal proceedings continue. Monday's order reaffirms much of that overhaul.

Public health experts say childhood vaccination schedules are based on extensive research into when and how vaccines can safely be administered together. Safety monitoring continues after vaccines are introduced.