Executive order directs review of childhood vaccine schedule

An executive order signed Friday recognizes a recent scientific assessment by the Department of Health and Human Services on childhood vaccines as guidance for the federal government. The order directs the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and its Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices to review the assessment along with clinical data to update the recommended vaccine schedule for children and adolescents.

Policy direction The order states that the core childhood vaccine schedule should align with scientific evidence and best practices from peer developed countries while preserving access to currently available vaccines. It also directs the advisory committee to consider flexibility for doctors and parents when making recommendations on the timing and sequencing of routine immunizations.

In January the Department of Health and Human Services issued a memo that reduced the number of vaccines recommended for children.