Trump Eyes Vaccine Categories

The Trump administration is looking at whether the way vaccines are grouped into categories should be changed. Earlier this month, President Trump signed an executive order about childhood vaccines. Now, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is asking the public to share their opinions on whether the current vaccine category system is working well enough.

On Friday, HHS posted a Request for Information, often called an RFI. An RFI is an official document asking people to share ideas or feedback on a topic. In this case, the government wants to know if the current vaccine categories are 'adequate,' which means good enough to do the job. The public has until September 20, 2026, to submit their comments.

Right now, vaccines in the United States are placed into three groups. The first group is called 'routine,' which means vaccines that almost everyone should get. The second is 'risk-based,' which means vaccines recommended for people who face certain health risks. The third is called 'shared clinical decision-making,' or SCDM, which means a doctor and patient talk it over and decide together if a vaccine makes sense for that person.

In his executive order, President Trump called for moving some childhood vaccines out of the routine category. Under his plan, the number of routine childhood vaccines would drop from 18 to 11. Some of those vaccines would be moved into the risk-based or SCDM categories instead. Critics say this could mean fewer children get important vaccines.

Health care attorney Richard Hughes IV strongly criticized the RFI in a memo he released on Friday. He argued that the government is using the RFI as cover to push through bigger changes to how vaccines are recommended. He warned that the changes could have major effects on health care coverage and access across the country.

Hughes also pointed out that the RFI does not mention a key group called the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, or ACIP. ACIP is a team of medical experts that has been responsible for creating vaccine recommendations since 1964. Their recommendations affect many important health programs, including which vaccines must be covered at no cost under health insurance plans. Hughes said leaving ACIP out of the conversation is 'troubling,' because the committee plays such an important role in protecting public health.