Vaccines SLASHED By CDC

Doctor filling syringe with vaccine from vial.

President Trump’s HHS slashes CDC-recommended childhood vaccines from 17 to 11, prioritizing parental choice over Big Pharma’s overreach and restoring trust eroded by years of government mandates.

Story Snapshot

Acting CDC Director Jim O’Neill implements new schedule effective January 5, 2026, following Trump’s December 2025 order to align with peer nations.
Core vaccines like measles, polio, pertussis remain universal; flu, rotavirus now optional via shared decision-making.
HHS Secretary RFK Jr. champions transparency and informed consent, countering decades of unchecked expansion.
Physician groups decry risks, but administration cites rare side effects and international standards.

Trump Orders Vaccine Schedule Review

In early December 2025, President Trump directed a review of the US childhood vaccine schedule against peer nations like Belgium and Denmark. This addressed frustrations with the bloated 17-vaccine list built since the 1980s through ACIP processes. Acting CDC Director Jim O’Neill authorized the cuts effective January 5, 2026. The move empowers parents with informed consent, rejecting one-size-fits-all mandates that fueled hesitancy and outbreaks from declining trust.

New Schedule Prioritizes Essential Protection

The revised schedule retains 11 universal vaccines targeting severe diseases: measles, mumps, rubella, polio, pertussis, tetanus. Others shift to optional status for healthy children, using shared clinical decision-making or reserving for high-risk groups. Authors Tracy Beth Høeg and Martin Kulldorff’s 34-page review highlighted rare risks like rotavirus intussusception. This aligns America with international norms, reducing unnecessary shots while safeguarding against true threats.

RFK Jr. Leads Charge for Transparency

HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., former Children’s Health Defense co-founder, justified the overhaul as restoring public trust through exhaustive review and international consensus. RFK Jr. reconstituted ACIP in 2025 with fresh perspectives, overriding traditional delays. Precedents exist for drops based on data, unlike past hesitancy-driven declines in measles rates. States follow CDC guidance but retain mandate flexibility, minimizing federal overreach.

Prior CDC shifts, like dropping routine COVID shots for healthy kids in May 2025, set the stage. This empowers families against globalist pharma influence, prioritizing liberty over enforced compliance.

The U.S. took the unprecedented step Monday of cutting the number of #vaccines it recommends for every child — a move that leading medical groups said would undermine #protections against a half-dozen #diseases. @CDCgov https://t.co/ZvRp3dPXV0 pic.twitter.com/gGkKgfJUFC

— TheBirminghamTimes (@BhamTimes) January 6, 2026

Physician Backlash Ignores Parental Rights

The American Academy of Pediatrics labeled changes “dangerous,” warning of chaos and disease resurgence. AMA’s Crowley claimed ideology trumps epidemiology, predicting higher flu and rotavirus hospitalizations. Partnership to Fight Infectious Disease called it a step backward. Yet experts like Høeg and Kulldorff emphasize peer-nation practices and omitted hospitalization benefits in critiques. Short-term doctor confusion may rise, but long-term trust gains outweigh risks for conservative families valuing choice.

Impacts Favor Individual Liberty

Children face targeted protection against deadly diseases, while parents decide on lower-risk options, easing fears stoked by past overscheduling. Economic burdens from pharma-disrupted combos and extra visits pale against avoiding rare side effects. Politically, it bolsters anti-mandate alliances, challenging state overreach indirectly. High-risk groups retain access, balancing common-sense caution with proven safeguards. Outbreaks remain uncertain, but evidence-based essentials endure.