The Vaccine Intelligence Report: January 22-27

The Vaccine Intelligence Report—brought to you by Vaccinate Your Family—provides clear, fact-based updates on vaccine policy, research, and public health each week. This report is part of Viral Truths, a resource designed to cut through the noise, offering concise information to help navigate the evolving immunization landscape.

THIS WEEK AT A GLANCE

  • AAP released its 2026 vaccine guidance, which maintains broader routine pediatric vaccine recommendations and has been endorsed by 12 major medical organizations, formally breaking with the CDC’s scaled-back schedule and highlighting a growing divide between federal policy, the medical community, and many states
  • The new ACIP Chair raised doubts about routine vaccination against polio and measles, highlighting personal choice as his top priority in vaccine recommendations
  • The U.S. formally exits the World Health Organization, ending decades-long membership and raising questions about global health engagement
  • Changes to U.S. vaccine policy have prompted concerns related to vaccine uptake and innovation
  • The U.S. surpassed 500 new measles cases in January 2026, compared to just 19 in the same month last year, and the South Carolina outbreak became the largest in the U.S. in over two decades
  • Flu continues to take a toll, with 12 new pediatric deaths reported in the last week, and parents urge vaccination to help prevent severe outcomes

NEED TO KNOW

AAP Maintains Broader Vaccine Recommendations Despite CDC Rollback

  • The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP)—the leading U.S. medical organization for pediatric healthcare—published its 2026 recommended childhood and adolescent immunization schedule on Monday (January 26).
    • The medical group no longer endorses the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC’s) recommended schedule, and AAP Chair Dr. Sean O’Leary has urged parents to “trust their pediatrician.”
  • AAP’s 2026 schedule remains largely unchanged from 2025, recommending children be vaccinated against 18 diseases, as opposed to the 11 immunizations now routinely recommended for all children under the CDC’s new scaled-back guidance.
    • AAP continues to recommend the following immunizations for all children: Covid, hepatitis A and B, influenza, meningococcal disease, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and rotavirus. New federal guidance, however, only recommends these vaccines for high-risk groups or based on shared clinical decision-making (SCDM).
    • AAP recommendations are based on an independent expert review of vaccine safety data, the epidemiology of infectious diseases in the U.S., the impact of these diseases, and the role of vaccines in prevention.
  • The 2026 AAP immunization schedule has been endorsed by 12 leading medical and health organizations, including the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), American Medical Association (AMA), and American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP).
  • Additionally, the majority of states (28 including Washington, D.C.) have now said that they will not follow all or some of the CDC childhood vaccine recommendations, with most indicating they will instead follow AAP. See the below map for the full list of states as of January 22.

Jan 28 Newsletter Map.png

States that have announced they won’t follow the new CDC recommended childhood immunization schedule: AK*, AZ**, CA, CO, CT, DC, DE, HI, IL, KS, KY, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MS*, NC, NH, NJ, NM, NY, OR, PA, RI, VT, WA, WI

*hepatitis B only; **hepatitis B and Covid only

CDC Vaccine Panel Chair Raises Doubts About Routine Polio, Measles Shots

  • The newly appointed chair of the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), Dr. Kirk Milhoan, has raised questions about whether the polio and measles vaccines should continue to be routinely recommended for U.S. children, signaling a potential shift in long-standing U.S. immunization policy.
    • There is no new evidence to suggest such a change should be considered, and major medical organizations continue to recommendboth vaccines for all children.
  • Instead, Milhoan emphasized “individual autonomy” over “public health” as his top priority for ACIP, arguing that vaccines should be framed as optional rather than routine.
    • Former ACIP member Dr. Noel Brewer criticizedthe Chair’s comments, saying he seemed to misunderstand the purpose of the panel, which makes recommendations related to the control of vaccine-preventable disease and based on “what is best for the whole population.”
  • Milhoan also indicated that he didn’t believe that vaccines have been proven to reduce the spread of polio and measles viruses, arguing that today’s advances in medical care, sanitation practices, and disease risks may make vaccination unnecessary.
    • These statements come at a time when the U.S. is experiencing an active measles outbreak, with over 2,700 cases since January 2025. Three children died from measles last year.
    • Polio is a life-threatening disease that can cause permanent paralysis. There is still no cure for paralytic polio nor is there any specific treatment. Before the 1955 invention of the vaccine, the U.S. experienced widespread infection and countless deaths. In 1952 alone, there were nearly 60,000 cases and over 3,000 deaths.
  • Public health experts and pediatric organizations warn that undermining routine vaccination would jeopardize population-level protection and likely lead to new outbreaks, as the U.S. has already seen with measles.
    • While the country has been wild polio-free for decades, elimination depends on sustained high vaccination rates—reintroduction remains possible as long as the virus circulates elsewhere in the world.

U.S. Officially Withdraws from the World Health Organization, Prompting Major Global Health Concerns

  • Last Thursday (January 22), the United States officially completed its withdrawal from the World Health Organization (WHO), ending 78 years of continuous membership.
    • The withdrawal followed a year-long notice period triggered by an executive order signed by President Trump on January 20, 2025, directing the U.S. to exit the organization, which leads the coordination of international efforts to monitor disease, respond to health-related emergencies, set health standards, and support countries in improving population health.
  • The administration justified the move by criticizingthe WHO’s response to the Covid pandemic, claiming it mishandled early warnings and was influenced by political pressures.
  • According to a fact sheet published by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the U.S. “will continue to lead global health efforts independently—engaging partners directly, deploying resources efficiently, and ensuring accountability to the American people outside of WHO structures.”
  • As part of the withdrawal, the U.S. ended financial contributions and formal participation in WHO governance, though the organization says the U.S. still owes hundreds of millions of dollars in unpaid dues from prior years.
  • The U.S. has historically been one of the WHO’s largest and most influential members, providing funding and expertise that support global disease surveillance, outbreak response, and vaccine coordination.
  • Public health leaders have strongly criticized the move, warning that the exit will weaken global pandemic preparedness, limit access to shared disease data and monitoring, undermine global health security, and reduce U.S. influence over international health standards at a time when global coordination remains critical.

U.S. Vaccine Policy Changes Raise Questions About Uptake and Innovation

  • Recent changes in U.S. vaccine policy under HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.—including shifts in routine vaccine recommendations and restructuring of advisory panels—have led to concerns and uncertainty around the future of vaccine development and access.
  • As anti-vaccine rhetoric has shifted into concrete regulatory action, investors and business leaders point to signs of declining vaccine use, reduced confidence in the U.S. vaccine market, and growing unpredictability around future vaccine supply and costs.
  • Executives of several vaccine manufacturers have publicly criticized policy decisions, warning that recent changes could further limit vaccine uptake, increase the spread of infectious disease, and curtail future innovation.
    • The U.S. has already seen declining vaccination levels in recent years, with many counties falling below the threshold for community immunity against measles.
    • Two major flu vaccine manufacturers reported lower U.S. flu vaccine sales in the third quarter of 2025, despite a particularly severe 2025-2026 flu season.
  • Experts note that sustained uncertainty around vaccine policy can discourage long-term research and manufacturing investments, which matters not just for industry stability but for sustaining a dependable pipeline of vaccines needed to respond to future outbreaks and emerging health threats.

OUTBREAK OUTLOOK

South Carolina Measles Outbreak Named Largest in U.S. Since 2000, U.K. Loses Elimination Status

  • As of January 23, the U.S. has confirmed 518 measles cases since January 1, 2026—a sharp increase compared with just 19 cases reported during the same period in 2025.
  • The majority of U.S. cases remain concentrated in South Carolina, which has officially become the largest outbreak in the U.S. since measles was declared eliminated in 2000.
  • On Monday (January 26), the WHO announced that the United Kingdom (U.K.), along with five other European countries, has lost its measles elimination status.
    • Health officials determined that endemic transmission had occurred for more than a year after outbreaks that began in 2023 and 2024.
    • The U.K., which was first declared measles-free in 2016, lost elimination status in 2018 before regaining it in 2021.
    • Declining childhood measles vaccination rates in recent years have been linked to renewed transmission and outbreaks.

Flu Continues to Decline Overall, Parents Warn of Severe Impact Even on Healthy Children

  • Flu activity—including positive tests, hospitalizations, and deaths—has declined for the third consecutive week, according to the latest CDC data for the week ending January 17.
    • 30 states + D.C. are reporting high or very highflu activity, down from 34 states + D.C. the week prior.
    • The CDC estimates there have been at least 19 million flu illnesses, 250,000 hospitalizations, and 10,000 deaths so far this season.
    • 12 pediatric flu-related deaths were reported in the last week, bringing this season’s total to 44.
  • Despite recent declines, CDC data show flu season is not over: across the past 40 seasons, flu activity most often peaked in February.
  • Parents continue to highlight the flu’s unpredictability, warning that severe complications—including death—can occur even in otherwise healthy children.
    • Parents of Destiny, a healthy 16-year-old, said she contracted the flu in December 2024, which progressed rapidly to cardiac arrest and multi-organ failure. She died in May 2025 after receiving a heart and kidney transplant.
    • Another family described how their healthy teenage son, Blake, developed severe symptoms after flu infection and died less than four days after symptom onset due to organ failure.
    • Both teens had missed their flu vaccines that season, and their families are urging others to prioritize annual flu vaccination regardless of baseline health.
  • Nationally, overall respiratory illness activity remains low as of January 23.
    • RSV activity is elevated in parts of the country—including emergency department visits among infants less than 1 year and children 1-4 years old and hospitalizations among infants less than 1 year old—though these levels are decreasing.
    • Covid activity is elevated in some regions, but hospitalization levels remain low.

New Research Outlines Benefits and Safety of Shingles, Childhood Vaccines

  • Two large population-based analyses of Canadians over age 70 found that adults who received the shingles vaccine had a lower risk of developing dementia or experienced delayed onset compared with unvaccinated individuals.
    • The authors note that these natural experiment findings provide stronger causal evidence than previous observational studies.
  • A U.S. study of over 2,000 children under age 4 found no association between routine childhood vaccines—including those containing aluminum adjuvants—and the development of epilepsy.
    • Researchers determined that children who were up to date on recommended vaccines had no increased risk of epilepsy.
    • Similarly, higher cumulative exposure to vaccine-related aluminum did not increase epilepsy risk, contributing to a growing body of evidence on the safety of aluminum adjuvants.

REALITY CHECK

These fact checks respond to several recent claims made by different groups and individuals.

CLAIM: Routine vaccination against diseases such as measles and polio may no longer be necessary, given better sanitation practices, decreased disease risk, and advances in medical care.

  • REALITY: Routine vaccination remains the best protection against infectious disease.
  • Improvements in sanitation—such as clean water, handwashing, and food safety—helped reduce the spread of many infectious diseases in the early 20th century, but they are not enough to prevent highly contagious viruses like measles or polio from spreading.
  • These diseases remain dangerous today. Measlesand polio can cause severe illness, permanent disability, and death—particularly in unvaccinated populations.
    • In the U.S., measles is actively spreading, with nearly 3,000 measles cases reported since January 2025 (including more than 500 cases in January 2026 alone), and 3 children have died. Globally, measles caused an estimated 11 million infections and 95,000 deaths in 2024.
    • Polio has not been eradicated and some countries still have circulating poliovirus.
  • History shows that sanitation alone is not sufficient. In the U.S., improvements in sanitation did not eliminate polio and were associated with increasedspread among children before vaccines became widely available.
  • Vaccines succeed where sanitation and medical care cannot because they prevent infection from occurring in the first place, rather than attempting to manage disease after exposure.
  • While modern medical care can reduce complications and improve survival, it cannot reliably prevent severe outcomes once infection occurs.
    • Depending on the strain, polio causes paralysisin roughly 1 in 200 people to 1 in 2,000 infections. There is no cure or specific treatment for paralytic polio, and up to 10% of people paralyzed by polio will die, as they become unable to breathe.
      • Additionally, up to 40% of people infected with polio will develop post-polio syndrome(PPS), a progressive neuromuscular disease, later in life.
    • Similarly, there are no approved antiviral treatments for measles. Even with modern medical care, infection remains very dangerous: 1 to 3 out of every 1,000 infected people will die—even with the best care.
  • In short, sanitation and medical care help reduce harm, but vaccination is the single most powerful tool for preventing infection, stopping outbreaks, and protecting individuals and families.

CLAIM: Vaccines, including the diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis (DTP or DTaP) vaccine, are associated with higher rates of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).

  • REALITY: This claim is false. While SIDS peaksaround the age infants receive some early vaccines, this simply represents correlation. There is no evidence that DTP/DTap vaccines cause SIDS.
  • The cause of SIDS remains unknown, but numerous studies conducted over several decades have found no evidence of a causal relationship between DTP/DTaP vaccines and SIDS.
    • A 1988 study of nearly 130,000 children born between 1974 and 1984 who received at least one DTP vaccination before age one found no increase in the risk of SIDS after immunization with the DTP vaccine.
    • A 2003 report by the Institute of Medicine (IOM) concluded that the evidence favored rejection of a causal relationship between DTP vaccine or exposure to multiple vaccines and SIDS.
      • This conclusion was upheld in the IOM’s 2012 report, which found no new relevant, quality studies assessing SIDS and DTaP vaccination.
    • A 2016 retrospective analysis of all 2-month-old infants in California vaccinated with a DTaP-containing vaccine between 2008 and 2010 found no safety concerns associated with the vaccines. The study noted that none of the 13 deaths due to SIDS were determined to be related to DTaP-containing vaccines.
    • A 2016 study of sudden infant deaths among Taiwanese infants found that the current DTaP vaccine does not increase the risk of SIDS.

CLAIM: Medical providers receive kickback payments on vaccines, and as a result push vaccines for financial reasons rather than medical reasons.

  • REALITY: This claim is false. Kickbacks tied to vaccine administration are illegal, and clinicians recommend vaccines based on established standards of care with the goal of preventing disease, not because of hidden financial incentives.
    • A “kickback” is an illegal payment or benefit intended to influence a clinician’s medical decisions. Federal law prohibits offering, paying, soliciting, or receiving anything of value in exchange for recommending or providing healthcare services, including vaccines.
      • If providers were receiving “kickbacks” for vaccines, it would constitute fraud and be subject to criminal prosecution.
  • What providers do receive is standard reimbursement from insurers for the vaccine and for administering it—just as they do for other medical services. This is not an incentive or bonus.
    • Vaccinating patients carries real costs, including purchasing and storing vaccines, staff time, documentation, and reporting, which reimbursement is intended to help cover.
  • In some cases, providers receive no payment for the vaccine itself. Under the federally funded Vaccines for Children (VFC) program, vaccines are supplied at no cost for eligible children, and clinicians are prohibited from charging for them.
    • Providers may bill a standard administration or office visit fee, but must still vaccinate at no cost if families cannot pay—underscoring that vaccination is not driven by profit.
  • Claims that value-based care (VBC) constitutes a “kickback” are also inaccurate. The VBC payment model ties reimbursement to quality and patient outcomes rather than the quantity of visits or services performed.
    • VBC is designed to encourage more efficient, higher-quality care by rewarding positive patient outcomes—it does not in any way pay providers to carry out specific procedures, such as vaccination, as a hidden incentive.
  • In reality, vaccinating patients is often financially challenging for medical practices. Vaccines require significant upfront investment and ongoing administrative work, and reimbursement does not always fully cover these costs.
    • For many pediatric practices, vaccines are among their largest expenses, second only to staffing—making vaccination far from a profit center.

WHAT TO WATCH

CDC-Funded Study of Hepatitis B Birth Dose in Africa Suspended

  • The CDC-funded study of newborn hepatitis B vaccination in Guinea-Bissau has been suspendedpending further review, according to country officials, who said it had not received proper ethical approval.
    • The $1.6 million grant has drawn significant criticism related to the award process, ethical implications, and scientific credibility.
  • The country’s National Medicine Regulatory Authority and National Ethical Committee will provide health officials with a briefing and recommendations on if and how the trial may proceed in the future.

States Turn to Litigation to Challenge Vaccine Practices

  • State officials in Florida and Texas are advancing legal strategies to scrutinize vaccine advertising and pediatric vaccination practices, signaling a broader shift toward using consumer protection and enforcement tools to influence vaccine policy outside traditional public-health channels.
    • In Florida, a state Senate committee advanced legislation supporting state lawsuits over vaccine marketing related to vaccine advertising and marketing practices.
    • In Texas, Attorney General (AG) Ken Paxton announced an investigation into pediatric vaccination practices, issuing more than 20 civil investigative demands to major providers, insurers, and manufacturers to examine alleged undisclosed financial incentives tied to vaccination.
  • Together, the actions reflect a broader trend of states using litigation and consumer protection laws to challenge vaccine-related practices outside traditional public health channels.

HPV Vaccine Work Group to Meet Ahead of February ACIP Meeting

  • Ahead of the February ACIP meeting, the committee is convening a new work group charged with reexamining the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine. The group will be led by Retsef Levi, who sits on ACIP and holds a PhD in Operations Research but is neither a physician nor a scientist.
    • Last month, the CDC published a terms-of-reference document directing the work group to evaluate the safety, efficacy, dosing, and long-term outcomes of the vaccine after nearly two decades of approval and use.
  • The review has raised concerns among experts who point to the fact that the HPV vaccine has been extensively studied and has many years of real-world evidence establishing its safety and cancer-prevention benefits, and that renewed scrutiny–without scientific rationale—risks creating confusion around a vaccine that has drastically reduced the rates of cervical cancers and precancers.
    • The Vaccine Integrity Project, an initiative of the University of Minnesota’s Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy (CIDRAP), recently announced that it will conduct its own independent review of the evidence on HPV vaccines.

Vaccinate Your Family is a nonpartisan organization dedicated to protecting people of all ages from vaccine-preventable diseases. To learn more, visit us at: vaccinateyourfamily.org

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