Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. stepped back from plans to publicly promote Denmark’s childhood vaccine schedule after internal legal and political objections prompted the department to cancel a planned announcement at the last minute.
Senior administration officials said the press conference, billed as an announcement on children’s health, was called off after the HHS Office of the General Counsel warned that endorsing the Danish schedule could expose the department to legal challenges it might not win. Other officials said the move was also viewed as politically risky, given ongoing debate over vaccines and recent lawsuits involving the department.
The event, which HHS had publicly announced only hours earlier, was expected to feature Kennedy alongside senior health agency leaders and Food and Drug Administration officials. It would have highlighted Denmark’s approach to childhood immunization, which recommends vaccines for fewer diseases than the U.S. schedule. The Danish model excludes routine shots for illnesses such as chickenpox, influenza, hepatitis A and B, meningitis, respiratory syncytial virus and rotavirus.
The episode followed a presidential memorandum signed earlier this month directing HHS and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to review childhood vaccine schedules used by peer nations and consider changes if those approaches were deemed superior. The directive cited Denmark, Japan and Germany as examples of countries that require fewer vaccines for children.
Inside HHS, the prospect of publicly endorsing the Danish schedule exposed sharp divisions. Supporters argued that offering it as an alternative could help rebuild trust among vaccine-hesitant parents, particularly after contentious Covid-era mandates and shifting public health guidance. They viewed a peer-country option as a potential reset that might increase overall vaccination rates.
Critics within the department countered that the plan lacked sufficient scientific justification and bypassed established regulatory processes. They warned that publicly promoting a slimmer schedule could undermine confidence in routine immunizations and signal uncertainty about vaccine safety and necessity.
Legal concerns weighed heavily in the final decision. HHS is already facing litigation from pediatric and public health groups over earlier changes to Covid vaccine recommendations, with plaintiffs arguing the department failed to follow required rulemaking procedures. Department lawyers concluded that moving forward without extensive scientific review and formal process could invite additional lawsuits.
The debate unfolded amid Kennedy’s broader push to reexamine vaccine policy and expand research into autism, a condition he has long linked to vaccination despite extensive studies finding no causal connection. HHS has launched new research initiatives to study autism’s causes, while acknowledging that any findings will take time.
Source: Politico