US Ends Mandatory Flu and Hepatitis A Shots for Children

The US government has decided that children no longer have to get four specific vaccines: the flu shot, rotavirus, meningitis, and hepatitis A. Instead, parents and doctors will now decide together if a child needs these shots.

The new Health Secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has been pushing for this change.

President Trump supports it, saying it makes sense and follows what other countries do.

However, many doctors are worried because these vaccines help prevent serious illnesses.

They say the flu can be very dangerous, and before the rotavirus vaccine, many children were hospitalized.

The government will still recommend 11 other vaccines, and insurance will pay for these shots if parents want them.

Doctors are watching to see if fewer children get vaccinated and if that leads to more sickness.