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An comprehensive overhaul of US childhood vaccination protocols has led to a decrease in the number of universally advised vaccines from 17 to 11.

The freshly released list from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention retains core shots for illnesses like polio and measles. However, several others, including liver infection vaccines and Covid vaccines, are now classified based on individual risk factors and dependent on "shared clinical decision-making" involving physicians and parents.

"This revised guideline is risky and needless," criticized the AAP, labeling the change.

This far-reaching guideline shift represents the latest major action undertaken under the current administration by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Government Rationale and Global Alignment

Kennedy asserted the revision followed "following an thorough analysis" and "protects children, honors families, and restores trust in the health system."

"We are bringing the U.S. childhood vaccine calendar with international standards while enhancing transparency and parental choice," he continued.

According to the statement, the updated core schedule for all children will include immunizations for:

• Measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR)
• Poliovirus
• DTaP/Tdap (Diphtheria, Tetanus, Pertussis)
• Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib)
• Pneumococcus disease
• HPV
• Chickenpox

Three Tiers of Guidance

The revised framework establishes three separate categories of immunization advice:

1. Core Recommendations: The 11 immunizations mentioned above are advised for every children.
2. Conditional Recommendations: This category includes shots for RSV, hepatitis A, hepatitis B, dengue fever, and meningococcal strains (ACWY and B). They are recommended based on a patient's individual health circumstances.
3. Optional Vaccines: Vaccinations for the coronavirus, influenza, and a stomach virus are now subject to case-by-case discussion and choice between families and their physicians.

Currently, medical coverage will still cover vaccines that are currently on the schedule until the end of 2025.

International Perspective and Prior Controversy

The health agency conducted a review of current pediatric recommendations with those of 20 other industrialized countries. It found the United States was "a global outlier" in both the quantity of diseases covered and the number of shots required, the HHS reported.

This latest announcement comes a short time after a separate CDC panel modified the schedule for the initial liver infection shot. Formerly, a first shot was recommended for infants within a day of delivery. Revised rules last winter shifted that to two months post birth if the mother tested non-reactive for hepatitis B.

That prior change was widely condemned by pediatric doctors, with the AAP describing it "a dangerous move that will harm children."