US President Donald Trump is reportedly pressuring Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr to be more aggressive in reducing the US vaccination schedule, according to reporting from the Wall Street Journal. Trump has a history of anti-vaccine statements and reportedly asked Kennedy in May if he had the "yips" for not making enough cuts.
Kennedy, the secretary of the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), previously slashed routine childhood immunization recommendations from 17 to 11. However, a federal judge ordered a halt to these changes in March following a lawsuit from the American Academy of Pediatrics, also pausing the work of an advisory committee on immunization practices.
The White House had recently paused vaccine changes after polling suggested they were unpopular ahead of midterm elections. Despite this, Trump reportedly aims to make "alleviating autism" part of his legacy. The US government is appealing the judge's stay on vaccine changes, and Kennedy has continued to speak about autism and its potential causes.