Trump to order separate MMR shots amid US measles outbreak concerns

Newyork,UPDATED: Aug 11, 2026 00:52 IST

President Donald Trump is set to sign an executive order on Monday calling for changes to childhood vaccine recommendations, according to a White House fact sheet. The order backs his long-held view that some vaccines should be given separately over different medical visits.

Under the order, the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine would be recommended as three separate shots given at separate visits. It would also direct the US health department to improve vaccine research. Separate measles, mumps and rubella vaccines for children are not currently available in the US.

Public health experts have raised concerns that spacing out vaccines in this way could increase the risk of children being infected with a vaccine-preventable disease before they return for another visit. Even if the order calls for revised vaccine recommendations, states, not the federal government, have the authority to require vaccinations for schoolchildren.

Before Monday's announcement, the Trump administration had largely moved away from discussing vaccine policy and focused instead on less polarising issues such as healthy eating and efforts to lower drug prices ahead of the November elections. Polls show most Americans still support school vaccine requirements, although Republicans are less likely than Democrats to consider them important.

Trump has also continued to focus on linking autism to vaccines. He has recently increased pressure on Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to identify the cause of autism, something Kennedy had pledged to do with new research unveiled last year. At a Cabinet meeting last month, Trump asked, "How are you doing on the autism research?" Kennedy replied, "We will have an answer for you."

Scientific consensus and decades of studies have concluded that there is no link between childhood vaccines and autism. Childhood vaccines, including how and when they are given together, go through extensive studies, and safety monitoring continues for years after they are in use.

The development comes as schools across the US begin the new academic year and the country deals with a measles outbreak that experts say could cost it its measles elimination status. The executive order brings vaccine policy back into focus, while state governments continue to hold the power to set school vaccination requirements.

With PTI Inputs

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