President Donald Trump has signed an Executive Order aimed at giving parents more flexibility in determining their children's vaccination schedules. According to the order, the administration is introducing what it calls the Gold Standard Childhood Vaccine Recommendations, which are intended to align with those of other developed nations.
The new recommendations would reduce the number of vaccinations required for children from 18 to 11 diseases, and eliminate the requirement that all minors receive a COVID-19 vaccine. A Health and Human Services scientific assessment found that the current US vaccination schedule recommends many more vaccines than most western nation counterparts.
Under the new guidelines, parents are encouraged to schedule five separate vaccine appointments instead of having their children take multiple vaccinations at once. Trump has stated that this approach will allow for "amazing results" by breaking up the vaccination process into smaller doses.
The memo accompanying the Executive Order emphasizes flexibility and individualized decision-making for parents, particularly those with higher-risk children. It also recommends separating the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccines into separate shots instead of administering them together.
The order is part of Trump's Make America Healthy Again initiative, which was launched last year in response to what the administration calls an "escalating" health crisis. The White House did not provide further comment when reached for additional information.
NTC Report coverage is based on reporting from the original publisher.
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