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yesterday

CDC Vaccine Panel Votes to End Universal Hepatitis B Shot at Birth

The recommendation still awaits approval from the CDC’s acting director to become policy.

ATLANTA, GEORGIA - DECEMBER 4: Dr. Robert Malone, center left, speaks during a meeting of the CDC Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) at CDC Headquarters on December 4, 2025 in Atlanta, Georgia. The ACIP is meeting to vote on changes to the childhood vaccination schedule and delay hepatitis B shots. (Photo by Elijah Nouvelage/Getty Images)
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Hepatitis B is a liver infection caused by an extremely infectious virus.
The recommendations of the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices now go to the agency's acting director for approval.

Overview

  • ACIP voted 8–3 to drop the decades‑old birth‑dose recommendation, keeping immediate vaccination for infants of mothers who test positive or whose status is unknown.
  • For mothers who test negative, the guidance endorses shared decision‑making and allows starting the series at two months, with a separate vote suggesting antibody testing during the series.
  • The panel was reconstituted by HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.; President Trump praised the move, while Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy urged the CDC not to adopt it.
  • Major medical groups and experts, including the American Academy of Pediatrics and former CDC leaders, criticized the change as unsafe and warned it could erode protections for infants.
  • Several states, including California, Connecticut and Wisconsin, signaled they will continue recommending the birth dose, as models project large increases in preventable infections if the dose is delayed.