President Donald Trump has reportedly urged Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to move more quickly on reducing recommended childhood vaccinations and examining possible causes of rising autism diagnoses.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
President Donald Trump is pushing Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to make changes to the federal childhood vaccination schedule a greater priority, according to people familiar with their discussions.
Trump has repeatedly encouraged Kennedy to investigate whether vaccines could be connected to autism and has expressed frustration with the pace of the secretary’s efforts, The Wall Street Journal reported.
The president raised the subject during several meetings, including a lunch with Kennedy in May and an Oval Office discussion in June, according to the report. Trump reportedly believes that recommending fewer childhood vaccines could eventually contribute to lower autism rates.
Decades of scientific research have not established a causal relationship between vaccines and autism. Large studies involving hundreds of thousands of children have found no association between autism and the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine.
White House spokesman Kush Desai said the administration intends to investigate concerns surrounding increased autism diagnoses through what officials describe as “Gold Standard Science.”
“Countless parents with questions and concerns about America’s skyrocketing autism rates have long been ignored if not mocked,” Desai said. “The Trump administration is committed to leaving no stone unturned to finally address these concerns with Gold Standard Science.”
HHS spokeswoman Emily Hilliard said Kennedy and Trump share the same broader objective of addressing chronic health problems affecting children.
“Secretary Kennedy and President Trump are aligned in their commitment to confronting the chronic disease epidemic affecting America’s children through rigorous, gold-standard science,” Hilliard said.
Kennedy has made vaccine policy a significant part of his tenure at HHS, although White House political advisers reportedly encouraged him to place greater public emphasis on other elements of his “Make America Healthy Again” agenda ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.
Those advisers favored initiatives involving food quality because polling cited by the Journal indicated they were more popular with voters than skepticism about vaccines.
Trump has nevertheless continued raising childhood vaccination policy in his conversations with Kennedy, according to people familiar with the meetings.
The administration issued an executive order in May directing HHS to reduce the number of vaccines included in the recommended childhood immunization schedule. Officials argued that the United States recommends more routine childhood vaccinations than many other countries.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention currently recommends routine vaccinations protecting children against 17 diseases. Kennedy proposed reducing that number to 11, according to the report.
The administration’s effort has encountered a legal challenge. A federal judge in March blocked Kennedy’s proposed reduction in the childhood vaccination schedule, finding that the administration appeared to have bypassed the established advisory process used to formulate federal immunization recommendations.
The administration is appealing the ruling.
Trump has questioned for years whether vaccines might contribute to autism, despite scientific findings rejecting the proposed connection. Researchers have instead pointed to several possible reasons for the increase in diagnosed cases over the past two decades.
Those factors include broader diagnostic criteria, improved screening and greater public and professional awareness. Scientists continue investigating additional genetic, environmental and developmental contributors.
The report also described changes in the president’s circle of health policy advisers. Trump has increasingly sought guidance from Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz.
Some administration officials have privately speculated that Oz could eventually replace Kennedy as HHS secretary. HHS officials and Oz have publicly denied that such a transition is planned, according to the Journal.
Kennedy has told associates that he intends to remain in the administration for the long term.
The reported discussions indicate that Trump wants vaccine policy to move more rapidly despite political advisers’ preference for emphasizing broadly popular food and nutrition initiatives. Kennedy and the White House publicly maintain that they remain aligned on investigating childhood chronic disease and reshaping federal health policy.
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