Updates
1. The White House issues an executive order targeting vaccines
On Aug. 10, 2026, the White House issued an executive order calling for, among other things, a reduction from 17 to 11 in the numbers of diseases against which children are routinely vaccinated. The executive order also calls for the MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) vaccine to be split into three separate vaccines. However, there are no licensed standalone vaccines to protect against these three diseases available in the US and it would take at least 5 to 10 years to bring them to market, if any company were willing to invest in the testing and manufacturing capacity to do so. In remarks made at the signing ceremony, President Donald Trump made a number of demonstrably false statements, claiming children get a soda bottle’s worth of vaccines and repeating the allegation that vaccines can cause autism.
Editors' note: This executive order, which is a reaction to the administration’s losses in the courts, carries little direct legal weight, because of the central role of states in setting vaccine requirements. But it continues the administration’s intentional undermining of confidence in the safety and effectiveness of the current vaccine schedule while measles cases continue to mount in the US and vaccination rates fall.
2. Erica Schwartz becomes Director of the CDC
Following a confirmation hearing in which she expressed support for immunization and claimed she would never “betray the science,” Dr. Erica Schwartz was confirmed as the Director of the CDC. During that same hearing, she also testified that she did not believe President Trump or Sec. Kennedy would order her to do anything that would harm the public health.
Editors' note: Dr. Schwartz is in an impossible position. Either she implements the executive order issued on Aug. 10, 2026, which will put children at risk of vaccine-preventable disease, or she defies the President and Sec. Kennedy. We will be monitoring to see if her prediction comes true.
3. Flu mRNA vax approved
On Wednesday Aug. 5, 2026, the FDA approved the first flu vaccine that uses mRNA technology. One challenge with traditional flu vaccines is the need to select a strain several months ahead of flu season; the flu strains in circulation ultimately may or not match the strains selected for use in the vaccine. However, vaccines using mRNA can be made much more quickly, thus making it more likely that the strains selected for the vaccine will be a good match for the strains in circulation.
We had previously documented that, under Vinay Prasad, then the director of the Centers for Biologics Evaluation and Research, FDA had refused to even review the vaccine. This initial rejection was part of a larger pattern of hostility towards mRNA vaccines by the administration. After public pressure, however, FDA reversed itself in this case, reviewing and ultimately approving the vaccine.
Editors' note: The ability to more closely match the flu vaccine to the strains of flu in circulation is a significant step forward to reducing the morbidity and mortality of a virus that kills tens of thousands of people in the United States annually. This approval demonstrates the value and importance of having individuals in charge of health agencies who believe in following science rather than ideology.
4. HHS files new charters for the National Vaccine Advisory Committee (NVAC) and the Advisory Commission on Childhood Vaccines (ACCV)
On July 21, 2026, HHS published a new charter for the National Vaccine Advisory Committee, a federal advisory committee established to coordinate immunization activities across the United States government. The updated charter has been revised to direct the committee to consider non-immunization strategies (including lifestyle changes) for people who cannot or do not want to be vaccinated.
HHS also published a renewed charter for the Advisory Commission on Childhood Vaccines, which advises the Vaccine Injury Compensation program. The new charter makes some technical changes, but does not change the overall composition of the committee.
Editors' note: Sec. Kennedy continues his work shifting the federal immunization program away from using vaccination to improve public health.
5. United States agrees to distribute vaccine funds to Gavi
On Jul. 29, 2026, the Departments of State and HHS announced the release of $600 million in funds to Gavi, the global vaccine alliance, which helps vaccinate half of the world’s children. The United States had been withholding the funds from Gavi due to the beliefs of members of the administration in an association between thimerosal, a preservative used in some vaccines, and autism, despite the lack of evidence demonstrating this relationship. A bipartisan group of United States Senators had pressured the administration to release the funds. The announcement includes an agreement by Gavi to move away from vaccines containing thimerosal.
Editors' note: Sec. Kennedy's crusade against vaccines has affected not just the United States but children in lesser developed countries as well. It is not clear how Gavi will be able to transition away from the current preservatives in use, particularly in developing countries where use of preservatives is particularly crucial. At best, this is a distraction that will divert resources from elsewhere; at worst, this will reduce access to vaccines that have been proven to save lives.
6. Administration orders hospitals to share information on vaccine poisonings
The federal Consumer Product Safety Commission–which focuses on identifying and recalling dangerous consumer products–has asked numerous hospitals to report all emergency department visits by children that, among other conditions, result from “poisoning” by vaccines. The reporting would include sensitive and personally identifiable patient information and medical records.
Editors' note: The administration’s sprawling campaign against vaccines now includes an agency with no experience handling sensitive medical information. What could go wrong?
