Overview
- The AAP released an independent 2026 schedule that recommends vaccination against 18 diseases, including RSV, hepatitis A and B, rotavirus, influenza and meningococcal disease.
- The CDC’s January revision narrowed routine childhood recommendations to 11 diseases, which AAP leaders say departs from medical evidence.
- The AAP’s plan continues to recommend COVID-19 vaccination for all children starting at 6 months of age.
- At least 28 state health departments say they will use the AAP schedule rather than the CDC’s, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation report.
- Twelve organizations, including the AMA and AAFP, formally endorsed the AAP schedule, and the AAP joined a lawsuit seeking to block the federal changes while federal officials defend the reductions.