The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), a key body of medical and public health experts that advises the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on vaccine recommendations, made a significant decision on September 18, 2025, reflecting a detailed consideration of health data and addressing specific safety concerns.
During the first day of a two-day meeting held in Atlanta, the ACIP voted 7-4 to no longer recommend the combined measles, mumps, rubella, and varicella (MMRV) vaccine for children under the age of 4. This decision to update the pediatric vaccine schedule comes amid a growing national conversation regarding vaccine safety and the rigor of historical data. There are increasing demands to re-do safety tests of vaccines according to proper gold standard science. This demand stems from that previous claims of vaccine safety, including those derived from older CDC data, are considered insufficient and unreliable without new, rigorous testing. The recent Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing on September 15, 2025, titled “How the Corruption of Science Has Impacted Public Perception and Policies Regarding Vaccines” showed very concerning facts about the lack of safety and efficacy of the current bloated childhood vaccine program, and its connections with the epidemic of chronic diseases, autism included.
Febrile Seizures from MMRV
The MMRV vaccine, claimed to provide a combined protection against four diseases in a single injection, has been highly questioned repeatedly over the years. The primary safety concern driving the ACIP’s restriction was the elevated risk of febrile seizures in the youngest children. A febrile seizure is a condition where a child experiences a seizure triggered by a fever. Any fever in a newborn under 28 days is considered a medical emergency. Data presented during the meeting, including information detailed in the CDC’s briefing slides, showed that the MMRV vaccine increases this risk. Specifically, the vaccine increases the risk of febrile seizures by approximately one additional case per 2,300 to 2,600 doses compared to receiving the separate MMR and varicella vaccines. This heightened risk was particularly noted in children aged 12-23 months. Post-licensure studies, such as those conducted via the Vaccine Safety Datalink (VSD), supported this finding, demonstrating a higher incidence rate ratio (IRR) of 1.98 for febrile seizures occurring 7-10 days following vaccination with MMRV compared to the separate vaccines.
The ACIP decided to not recommend the combined MMRV vaccine to children under 4 years, but rather the four separate vaccines. The vote passed 7-4, with Dr. Robert Malone abstaining from the decision. His abstention was due to his professional role as an expert witness in a whistleblower lawsuit filed against Merck, the manufacturer of the MMRV vaccine. The decision awaits final approval from the acting CDC director, Jim O’Neill. .
A related proposal concerning the Vaccines for Children (VFC) program was also addressed. A proposal to change the eligible age group for MMRV to children aged 4-12 was rejected, with eight members voting no, one in favor, and three abstaining, due in part to confusion over the lack of full text for the proposal..
Scrutiny Extends to HepB and Vaccine Components
The focus on safety and rigorous testing extended beyond MMRV to other parts of the immunization schedule. The ACIP is also reviewing the Hepatitis B (HepB) vaccine schedule, including potential changes like a delay for newborns. A vote on the HepB schedule was postponed to September 19, 2025, due to a technical discrepancy between ACIP and VFC recommendations.
During the discussion on the HepB vaccine, critical questions were raised regarding the depth of existing safety data. CDC representatives noted that only three studies have examined HepB safety, and this was not the primary focus of those studies. Furthermore, the CDC acknowledged that no second study confirmed a “slight protective effect” against bronchopulmonary dysplasia and they could not present any data on whether babies required advanced care or experienced critical events after the Hep B vaccinations. Neither could there be found any infomation if the Hep B vaccine still contains thimerosal, a preservative which was removed from all routine childhood vaccines in 2001. Additional reports from Institute of Medicine, also cited as evidence Hep B vaccine is safe, were proved to be inconclusive and unreliable at a closer inspection, including the vaccine’s link to encephalopathy and 24 of the 26 serious adverse events.
Dr. Robert Malone said there are significant concerns about vaccine policy and vaccine mandates, not the least to give a vaccine at the time of birth, “often in a context in which no true informed consent has been provided”. He said that this practice has led to “a significant decrease in public support for vaccination.”
The ACIP will consider recommending that all pregnant women be tested for hepatitis B infection and propose changing the childhood vaccine schedule to delay HepB administration until the child is at least 1 month old if the mother tests negative. However, infants could still receive the vaccine before 1 month through shared clinical decision-making between the mother and medical practitioners.
