The president signed an executive order establishing federal guidelines for childhood vaccines and directing agencies to support parental choice. The document, released Aug. 14, 2026, follows a scientific assessment by the Department of Health and Human Services. That assessment found the United States recommends more childhood vaccines than peer nations and noted that most peer nations maintain vaccination rates through public trust rather than mandates. The order states that previous federal directives on childhood vaccines were delayed by litigation over the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices.
The order establishes “Gold Standard Childhood Vaccine Recommendations,” which sort immunizations into three categories. Vaccines recommended for all children include measles, mumps, rubella, polio, and several others. Vaccines for high-risk groups include hepatitis A and B, among others, while COVID-19 and influenza are placed in a category for shared clinical decision-making. The order states that the combined measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine should be administered as three separate shots once those single-disease products are domestically available. It also says all childhood immunizations should be administered at separate medical visits to the maximum extent feasible.
The order gives the HHS Task Force on Safer Childhood Vaccines 90 days to present plans to the president. The task force must offer options to administer core vaccines as single doses rather than combination products, while guaranteeing the continued availability of combination vaccines. The plans must also assess the timing and sequencing of the federal vaccine schedule based on scientific evidence. Additionally, the task force is directed to develop alternative adjuvants to aluminum, conduct comparative safety studies, and improve vaccine safety monitoring and transparency.
To address parental choice, the order directs the Departments of Justice, Education, and HHS to ensure their contractors and grantees comply with constitutional and federal statutory obligations related to parental authority, religious freedom, disability accommodations, and equal protection under the law. According to the order, this includes obligations to provide religious and medical exemptions from childhood and adolescent immunization requirements, to the extent applicable under federal law.
The attorney general is directed to take appropriate measures to further legal actions challenging state laws that conflict with those same constitutional and statutory obligations. The order also advises states and territories to review the federal recommendations and consider updating relevant laws and regulations that define immunization requirements for contexts such as school enrollment and attendance.