On Friday, the Centers for Disease Control’s vaccine panel voted 8-3 in favor of abandoning the universal recommendation of vaccinating newborns for hepatitis B, a dramatic shift from a decades-long practice that health experts and critics fear will have staggering impacts on public health. The vote is in alignment with Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. who has questioned the necessity of the shot at such an early age and packed the key panel with vaccine skeptics after taking office as Health and Human Services Secretary. Below, are the latest developments and the fallout from this monumentous health decision. Copied Nia Prater Updated Dec. 5, 2025, 2:28 PM EST

‘This is a disgrace and it will cost lives’

Senate Democrats offered their own criticism of ACIP’s move with some echoing C

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