Trump Is Reportedly Pressing RFK Jr. on Childhood Vaccines — and the Focus Is Sharper Than Expected

President Donald Trump is pushing Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to take stronger action on reducing the number of childhood vaccines, according to people familiar with the discussions reported by the Wall Street Journal.

Trump has repeatedly steered conversations with Kennedy back to the issue. In May he asked why more was not being done to examine the alleged connection between vaccines and autism. Kennedy was reportedly taken aback, having been told earlier to ease off the topic ahead of the midterms.

The president wants the federal childhood vaccine schedule updated with fewer recommended shots. The goal is tied to his determination to see autism rates decline. The rate among 8-year-olds stood at 1 in 36 as of 2020 and has since risen further, with Kennedy citing 1 in 31 last year.

“The epidemic is real,” Kennedy said previously. “Instead of listening to this canard of epidemic denial, all you have to do is start reading a little science, because the answer is very clear, and this is catastrophic for our country.”

He has maintained that the public deserves “good information.” Trump has said he supports vaccines but wishes the media and establishment would remain more open to examining possible harms.

Last year the CDC removed the coronavirus vaccine from the recommended schedule for healthy children and healthy pregnant women. Kennedy also announced the removal of a mercury-based preservative from flu shots.

The current schedule has infants receiving more than a dozen doses in the first six months of life. Including annual flu and coronavirus shots, the total can reach upwards of 72 injections by age 18. Trump signed an executive order earlier this year acknowledging an HHS scientific assessment on childhood vaccines as a guiding resource.