U.S. kindergarten vaccine coverage falls, CDC says

U.S. kindergartenvaccination coverage fell during the 2025-2026 school year,the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Monday.

Exemptions from one or morevaccines among kindergartners in the United States increased to 4.2% during the 2025-2026 school year from 3.6%in theprevious school year, the CDC said.

Exemptions rose in 41 states and Washington, D.C. Of these, 24 states reported exemptions exceeding 5%.

Coverage ranged from 92% for the diphtheria, tetanus and acellular pertussisvaccine(DTaP) to 92.4% for the measles, mumps and rubellavaccine(MMR) and the poliovaccine, the CDC said.

The CDC said coverage for the MMR, DTaP, polio and varicellavaccines decreased in more than halfthestates from the previousyear.

The number of kindergartners attending school without documentation of completing the MMRvaccineseries was about 280,000 during the 2025-2026 school year, according to the CDC.

With2,566 confirmed measles infectionsso far this year, the United States is experiencing the highest number of cases in more than 35 years. The rise in cases coincides with a steady decline in childhood MMR vaccination rates since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to the CDC, at least 95% of people need two doses of the measlesvaccineto help prevent outbreaks and keep communities safe.

U.S. President Donald Trump signed anexecutive orderlast week calling for fewer childhood vaccinations by limiting the inoculation schedule to 11 immunizations. The order alsorecommendedsplitting the measles, mumps and rubellavaccineinto three shots taken at separate visits.

The CDC said that while overall vaccination rates among kindergartners remained high, the data showed a 0.1% year-on-year decline in coverage.