The US Department of Health, headed by vaccine skeptic Robert Kennedy Jr., announced Monday that it would reduce the number of vaccines recommended for children, a new "much more reasonable schedule" according to Donald Trump but widely criticized by specialists.
With this reform, six vaccines previously recommended for all American children will now only be recommended for those particularly at risk.
This concerns vaccines against influenza, hepatitis A and B, meningococcus (which causes meningitis), and rotavirus, which causes gastroenteritis. The Covid-19 vaccine had already been removed from the list a few months ago.
President Donald Trump had asked his minister to review American vaccination policy in light of the practices of other developed countries, and in particular Denmark, which was taken as an example by the American government.
“After a comprehensive review of the knowledge,” Robert Kennedy Jr. said in a statement, “we are aligning the U.S. pediatric vaccination schedule with the international consensus.”
“We are adopting a much more reasonable schedule,” Donald Trump wrote on his Truth Social network on Monday. “Parents can still choose, if they wish, to have their children receive all the vaccines, and they will still be covered by insurance,” he added.
But many doctors are worried.
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"The U.S. childhood vaccination schedule is one of the most meticulously researched tools we have to protect children from serious, sometimes fatal, diseases," responded Sean O'Leary, an infectious disease and pediatrics specialist.
"It is crucial that any decision" on this matter "be based on evidence" and "not on comparisons that do not take into account major differences between countries and health systems," he added.
The example of Denmark, which until now recommended fewer vaccines for children than the United States, is not relevant, experts from the University of Minnesota recently warned.
“Denmark’s timeline reflects decisions made in a small, highly homogeneous country with a centralized public health system that guarantees universal access to care, a low prevalence of disease, and strong social infrastructure,” they wrote. “These conditions do not exist in the United States—far from it.”
The direction taken by Donald Trump's government is being criticized even within the Republican party.
The decision, "based on no scientific information about the risks, and very little transparency, will needlessly raise fears among patients and doctors, and will make America even sicker," wrote Senator Bill Cassidy, a physician by training, on X.
Now, 11 vaccines are recommended for all children in the United States, down from 17 previously. In France, 12 vaccines are mandatory, including those against hepatitis B (but not A) and meningococcus. The rotavirus vaccine is recommended, and the flu and Covid-19 vaccines are available.
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The measure follows other decisions stemming from vaccine skepticism.
In December, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said it was investigating possible deaths linked to Covid-19 vaccines, even though the effectiveness and safety of Covid vaccines have been documented by numerous studies.
Also in December, a group of experts completely revamped by the Minister of Health decided to stop recommending the hepatitis B vaccine for all newborns.
These initiatives are worrying the American medical community, especially as the country's vaccination rates have been declining since the Covid-19 pandemic and are raising fears of the return of deadly contagious diseases, such as measles.
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