Daijiworld Media Network - Washington
Washington, Aug 11: US President Donald Trump has recommended replacing the combined measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine with three separate shots as part of a sweeping overhaul of the country's childhood immunisation policy.
The recommendation will take effect once single-disease versions of the vaccines become available domestically. Until then, the combined MMR vaccine will continue to be available.
Trump's executive order also recommends administering childhood vaccines during separate medical visits “to the maximum extent feasible”. The White House said the changes would give parents greater control over the timing and frequency of vaccinations.
Under the order, the Health and Human Services (HHS) secretary has been directed to develop options for administering core childhood vaccines individually instead of through combination products. The process will begin with the MMR vaccine.
HHS must submit its proposals to the President within 90 days through the White House domestic policy adviser. The department may work with private companies and foreign governments to facilitate the availability of individual vaccines.
The order, however, guarantees the continued availability of combination vaccines as well as immunisations recommended through shared clinical decision-making.
The MMR recommendation is part of the administration's new “Gold Standard Childhood Vaccine Recommendations”, which reduces the number of diseases for which vaccination is routinely recommended for all children from 18 under the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's 2024 schedule to 11.
Measles, mumps and rubella remain among the diseases for which the administration recommends immunising every child. The other eight are diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, polio, Haemophilus influenzae type B, pneumococcal disease, human papillomavirus (HPV) and chickenpox, or varicella.
Other vaccines have been placed in categories covering children in certain high-risk groups or cases where vaccination decisions are made jointly by parents and clinicians.
The high-risk category includes respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) monoclonal antibodies and vaccines against hepatitis A, hepatitis B, meningococcal B, meningococcal ACWY and dengue.
Vaccines against influenza and COVID-19 have been placed under shared clinical decision-making. That category also includes vaccines against hepatitis A, hepatitis B, rotavirus and meningococcal disease.
The administration said its approach was based on a January 2026 HHS scientific assessment comparing US childhood immunisation recommendations with those of other developed countries.
According to the White House, the assessment found that the US recommended more childhood vaccines than any peer country and more than twice as many doses as some European nations. It identified 11 immunisations that it said were consistently recommended across the countries studied.
Besides separating combination vaccines, HHS has been directed to examine the timing and sequencing of all core childhood immunisations and may modify the federal childhood and adolescent vaccine schedule based on its findings.
The department has also been ordered to develop alternatives to aluminium-based adjuvants, conduct comparative safety and efficacy studies, continuously assess vaccine risks and benefits using US and international data, and strengthen vaccine safety monitoring, research and transparency.
Federal departments and agencies have been directed to review the new recommendations and take appropriate steps to advance them. States and territories have also been advised to consider updating laws governing vaccination requirements for school enrolment and attendance.