Trump signs executive order calling for fewer childhood vaccines, falsely linking shots to autism

US Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (R) looks on as President Donald Trump speaks before signing an executive order calling for more research and flexibility on vaccines, in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on August 10, 2026. Jim Watson | Afp | Getty ImagesPresident Donald Trump on Monday signed an executive order backing fewer routine vaccines for kids, calling to whittle down the number of recommended childhood shots to 11 while falsely tying immunizations to autism. The order builds on the Trump administration's efforts to reshape the childhood shot schedule under Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a longtime vaccine skeptic. "This updated recommendation finally aligns the United States with other advanced and developed nations around the world," Trump said during a briefing on Monday. "More importantly, it aligns us with common sense and knowledge."He also falsely tied vaccines to autism, suggesting multiple times that rising rates of childhood shots have led to an increase in autism diagnoses. Decades of scientific evidence has shown no link between autism and childhood vaccines.He also called for splitt...