Statement of NFID Medical Director Robert H. Hopkins Jr., MD
Protecting children from preventable infectious diseases must remain a national public health priority. The United States is currently experiencing its largest measles resurgence in more than three decades. The nation is approaching another respiratory season after two severe influenza seasons, including a record-high hospitalization rate in 2024–2025 with one of the highest pediatric death tolls on record and nearly 200 pediatric deaths in 2025–2026.
Vaccines are among the most effective tools available to protect children from serious illness, hospitalization, disability, and death. The vaccines routinely recommended for children have been studied extensively, used safely for many years, and are continually monitored through well-established safety surveillance systems.
In light of the August 10, 2026 Executive Order on childhood vaccine recommendations, the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID) strongly reiterates its endorsement of the American Academy of Pediatrics’ (AAP) childhood immunization schedule and reaffirms AAP’s evidence-based recommendations to protect children from vaccine-preventable diseases.
NFID shares the goal that unites parents, clinicians, and policymakers alike: keeping children healthy and protected from vaccine-preventable diseases. Reaching that goal depends on grounding vaccine recommendations in evidence. Any change to long-standing childhood vaccine recommendations should be supported by clear scientific evidence that schedule changes will better protect children and should follow rigorous, transparent review by independent experts. Changes made without that evidence risk weakening the protections children have today.
US childhood vaccine recommendations should also reflect the epidemiology and burden of disease within the United States and the needs of our diverse population. Evidence and experience from other countries offer valuable insight, but differences in populations, disease patterns, healthcare systems, and immunization programs must be weighed carefully. A schedule modeled on another country’s circumstances will not necessarily provide the same protection for children in the United States. The number of vaccines or doses on a schedule is not a measure of whether that schedule is sound. What matters is whether each recommendation is supported by evidence of its benefits and risks in the context of the diseases children in this country face.
Changes to the childhood immunization schedule must also account for their potential effect on vaccine access. When vaccines become more difficult to obtain, fewer children are protected, increasing the risk that diseases long held in check can re-emerge. At a time when communities across the country are confronting the return of preventable diseases, the nation should be strengthening its ability to protect children, not putting that progress at risk.
NFID remains committed to providing healthcare professionals, families, and the public with objective, evidence-based information to help protect children and communities from preventable infectious diseases. We encourage parents and families with questions to talk with a trusted healthcare professional.
About the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases
Founded in 1973, the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID) is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to educating and engaging the public, communities, and healthcare professionals about infectious diseases across the lifespan. NFID has a 4-star rating from Charity Navigator and has earned a Platinum transparency seal from Candid/GuideStar. For more information, and to access trusted science-based resources on immunization for both healthcare professionals and the public, visit www.nfid.org.
Contact: communications@nfid.org
