The American Academy of Pediatrics is once again breaking from federal guidance, releasing a revised 2026 childhood immunization schedule that restores vaccine recommendations the government removed earlier this month.
On Monday, the American Academy of Pediatrics published its 2026 Recommended Child and Adolescent Immunization Schedule, continuing to advise vaccinations for hepatitis A and B, meningococcal disease, rotavirus, influenza, and RSV. Those illnesses were taken off the routine schedule for all children in recent updates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
While the AAP linked to the CDC’s current schedule in its announcement, it emphasized that it does not support the revised federal guidance. When the CDC changes were first announced, the academy labeled them “dangerous and unnecessary.”
“At a time when parents, pediatricians, and the public are looking for clear guidance and accurate information, this ill-considered decision will sow further chaos and confusion and erode confidence in immunizations,” AAP President Andrew Racine said in a statement.
The disagreement reflects ongoing tension between pediatric leaders and the Department of Health and Human Services under Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.. An HHS spokesperson defended the CDC’s approach, saying, “The updated CDC childhood schedule continues to protect children against serious diseases while aligning U.S. guidance with international norms.”
The divide has widened over the past year. The AAP boycotted a meeting of the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices after being removed from committee work groups. The organization, which represents about 67,000 pediatricians, also criticized decisions to scale back recommendations for vaccines such as the combined measles, mumps, rubella, and varicella shot.
The dispute has moved into the courts as well. The AAP and other health groups are suing the Trump administration over the reduced immunization schedule. “We are confident that we will demonstrate for the court that this administration has acted arbitrarily and capriciously in revisions to the childhood immunization schedule,” said Richard Hughes IV, attorney for the plaintiffs.
Earlier this month, a federal judge ordered the restoration of $12 million in grants to the AAP that had been canceled in December, adding another layer to an escalating fight over childhood vaccine policy.
