Dr. Mehmet Oz, administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, has voiced full support for President Donald Trump’s recent directive to reassess the United States’ childhood vaccine schedule. Speaking during the Kennedy Center Honors in Washington, Oz emphasized that the country must regularly review vaccine policies to ensure they align with the best available evidence and international standards.
The initiative, announced by Trump on Friday, instructs Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and acting CDC Director Jim O’Neill to conduct a comprehensive review of how the U.S. vaccine schedule compares to those in other developed nations, such as Japan and Denmark. These countries typically require fewer childhood vaccinations than the U.S., prompting concerns about whether the American schedule could be safely adjusted.
Oz argued that regular reevaluation is part of responsible governance. “What does a good parent do?” he asked. “They love their kids, they put them in the car seat, but they don’t just hope it works right. They check everything. We should be doing that all the time.”
He specifically referenced the hepatitis B vaccine, which is currently administered to newborns within 24 hours of birth. Oz questioned whether that timing is always necessary, particularly when the mother does not carry the virus. “If the mother doesn’t have any evidence of it in her blood, then why would you give the child the vaccine the first day of life? You could probably wait, and you should wait,” he said.
Rather than rejecting vaccines, Oz reiterated that the review is about improving safety, transparency, and trust. He highlighted that ACIP—the federal advisory panel on immunization—would be taking a serious look at certain vaccines as part of the initiative.
Oz also stressed that other Western nations have adopted different approaches, and there’s value in examining why. “There are other countries that are fantastically capable of looking at vaccine data, and they’ve made very different decisions than we have,” he noted. Trump’s order, he added, is simply about “kicking the tires one more time” to ensure the United States isn’t overlooking better, evidence-based policies.
The outcome of the review could shape the future of how vaccines are administered in the U.S., potentially introducing more flexibility and doctor-patient discretion into childhood immunization practices.
