Federal vaccine advisers appointed by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. are preparing to vote on ending the routine hepatitis B shot for all newborns and to review whether childhood vaccines are linked to rising allergies and autoimmune disorders, according to new panel chair Kirk Milhoan.
The committee will also scrutinize the broader childhood immunization schedule during meetings this week, moves that could signal major changes to U.S. vaccination policy.
The panel is expected to vote Thursday on eliminating the recommendation that newborns receive a hepatitis B dose within 24 hours of birth, instead weighing a delayed first dose with timing “still being finalized,” Milhoan said. “We’re looking at what may be causing some of the long-term changes we’re seeing in population data in children, specifically things such as asthma and eczema and other autoimmune diseases,” he said, adding the panel is examining aluminum as an adjuvant.
On Friday, top vaccine regulator Vinay Prasad also announced plans to tighten vaccine approvals, including flu shots, after concluding coronavirus vaccines contributed to the deaths of at least 10 children.
