New York will continue to follow its own childhood vaccine schedule and ignore the recommendations of federal officials made earlier this week to remove several of the shots, officials said Tuesday.
New York State Health Commissioner Dr. James McDonald said current mandated vaccinations for children attending school would remain in place.
“There was no new science, safety data or discovery presented by the federal government,” McDonald said in a statement. “New Yorkers can continue to be confident that vaccines offer the best protection from preventable childhood diseases.”
On Monday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced it would no longer recommend that all children be vaccinated against hepatitis A, hepatitis B, dengue, rotavirus, influenza and meningococcal disease. Instead, it said some of those vaccines should be given children at risk of severe illness or after the parents have engaged in “shared clinical decision making” with their pediatricians.
The move brought outrage among pediatricians, who said the changes would only make vaccine-hesitant parents less likely to have their children immunized and could cause a surge in preventable and serious illnesses.
But Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., an outspoken vaccine skeptic, said Monday the changes were recommended after comparing the childhood vaccine schedule in the U.S. with similar countries.
In a statement, Kennedy says the decision “protects children, respects families, and rebuilds trust in public health.”
Vaccines that are still recommended by the federal health agency include those for diphtheria, tetanus, acellular pertussis (whooping cough), Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib), pneumococcal conjugate, polio, measles, mumps, rubella, human papillomavirus (HPV) and varicella (chickenpox).
State health officials said vaccine access and insurance coverage would not change. Health care providers in New York should “continue their existing, evidence-based immunization practices” the Health Department said in its announcement.
Children who are entering day cares, pre-K programs and school in the state must first be vaccinated against diphtheria, tetanus and acellular pertussis (whooping cough); measles, mumps and rubella (MMR); polio; varicella (chickenpox); and hepatitis B.
In addition, children between grade 6 through 12 also need to receive the Tdap vaccine and two doses of the meningococcal conjugate vaccine between grades 7-12, with the booster given after their 16th birthday or during their senior year.
Children in day care and pre-K must also receive the Haemophilus influenzae type b conjugate vaccine (HiB) and pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV)
Previously, New York joined a coalition of states, known as the Northeast Public Health Collaborative, to create their own guidance, including for the COVID-19 vaccine, which the CDC no longer recommends for all children.
Lisa joined Newsday as a staff writer in 2019. She previously worked at amNewYork, the New York Daily News and the Asbury Park Press covering politics, government and general assignment.