On Monday, August 10th, 2026, former President Donald Trump signed an executive order proposing significant changes to the childhood vaccination schedule in the United States. The order attempts to override the authority of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the federal agency responsible for vaccine recommendations.

The order calls for the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine to be administered as three separate shots once available in the US, and recommends that all vaccines be given at separate medical visits. This approach contrasts with current CDC guidance, which supports administering multiple vaccines together due to safety, convenience, and lower costs.

Only six of the 17 vaccines routinely recommended for all children would retain full recommendations under the new order: MMR, diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis (DTaP), polio, Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib), pneumococcal disease, human papillomavirus (HPV), and varicella. Five other vaccines, including those for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), hepatitis A and B, and meningococcal ACWY, would be recommended only for high-risk groups.

At the signing, Trump stated, “Together, there could be a possibility they’re quite lethal,” referring to the MMR vaccine. He also claimed to have seen evidence of adverse effects from vaccines administered in large volumes to children, describing the situation as “an explosion, it’s an epidemic,” seemingly alluding to autism.

Legal challenges have already halted earlier CDC vaccination recommendation changes made this year, and the CDC remains the official federal body tasked with vaccine guidance, not the White House. However, experts note that Trump’s influence may increase political pressure on states to alter school vaccination requirements.

Sources