The Trump administration considers an executive order to separate MMR vaccines into three doses, challenging long-standing immunisation practices and prompting debate over vaccine safety and politics.
The Trump administration is preparing an executive order that would push federal officials to split the combined measles, mumps and rubella vaccine into three separate injections, according to Axios. The move would mark a major break with long-standing childhood immunisation practice and would come after recommendations from vaccine advisers appointed by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a longtime critic of standard vaccine policy.
The proposal fits a wider effort by Trump and Kennedy to reshape the federal vaccination schedule. Reportedly, the White House is seeking a more aggressive rollback of childhood vaccines, even as medical experts say there is no scientific evidence that the current schedule raises the risk of autism or other harms. Kennedy has repeatedly advanced claims linking vaccines and autism, despite years of research rejecting that connection.
That line of argument has followed Kennedy through his public life and into government. FactCheck.org reported during his confirmation hearing that he refused to say vaccines do not cause autism and instead cited a flawed paper in support of the idea that there is credible evidence for such a link. The same outlet has also documented years of false or misleading claims from Kennedy about vaccines and autism, while a leaked call reported by FactCheck.org last year showed Trump repeating similar falsehoods about childhood shots.
According to recent reporting from The Guardian and Ars Technica, Trump has grown frustrated that Kennedy has not gone far enough in reducing vaccines, apparently viewing the issue as one he wants to shape as part of his political legacy. The result is a policy push that would inject a deeply contested anti-vaccine agenda into federal health decision-making, with possible consequences for parents, paediatricians and public health officials already bracing for renewed controversy.
Disclaimer: This content is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical judgment, advice, diagnosis, or treatment.
