President Donald Trump says children receive too many shots. But his proposal to break the combined measles, mumps and rubella vaccine into three separate injections would increase the number of shots children need — while raising concerns that more families could delay or skip protection.
Trump signed the executive order Aug. 10, 2026, giving Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. 90 days to present plans for offering individual vaccines, starting with MMR. That puts the deadline at Nov. 8. The order calls for preserving access to combination vaccines while developing separate options.
The proposal comes as measles continues spreading. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 4,410 confirmed U.S. cases through Oct. 15, compared with 2,289 during all of 2025. Kansas and Missouri are among the jurisdictions reporting cases this year.
More shots, more visits
The combined MMR vaccine protects against three diseases with one injection. Children typically receive two doses. Separating its components could turn those two injections into six, with additional appointments if each vaccine is administered at a separate visit.
That creates a contradiction: While Trump has criticized the number of childhood shots, separating MMR would require more injections to provide the same protection.
The administration presents the proposal as a way to give parents greater control over vaccination. Its order recommends separate medical visits for childhood immunizations whenever feasible. But vaccine specialists warn that additional appointments create more opportunities for missed doses, leaving children vulnerable longer.
Could parents skip measles protection?
Separating the vaccines would also allow parents to accept protection against some of the diseases while declining others. A parent concerned about the measles component, for example, could choose mumps and rubella shots without accepting measles protection.
That is a possible consequence, rather than an established explanation for Trump’s decision. The order continues to recommend measles vaccination for all children. Kennedy has argued that offering individual shots could persuade some hesitant parents to vaccinate. Experts interviewed by FactCheck.org warned that the added appointments could instead reduce overall coverage.
Autism claims lack scientific support
Trump has suggested that separating vaccines could reduce autism. Decades of research have found no credible link between the MMR vaccine and autism, and there is no evidence that splitting the vaccine prevents autism.
A World Health Organization safety committee reaffirmed that conclusion in December 2025 after reviewing research from multiple countries. Its assessment included 31 primary studies published between January 2010 and August 2025 and found no causal relationship between vaccines and autism.
The original article also describes Japan’s experience: Autism rates continued rising after the country stopped using its combined MMR vaccine. Switching to separate shots did not produce the reduction that vaccine critics had suggested.
A plan, not an immediate switch
Individual measles, mumps and rubella vaccines are not currently available in the United States. Developing and supplying them would require additional work; the 90-day deadline is for presenting a plan, not putting new vaccines in doctors’ offices.
Merck, a manufacturer of MMR vaccines, told CNN that reformulating, testing and obtaining approval for separate products could take years.
For families, the immediate concern is the gap between delaying vaccination and receiving protection. More appointments mean additional transportation, time away from work and chances to miss a dose. As measles cases climb, experts warn that those delays could leave more children exposed to a preventable disease.