The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reduced the number of recommended vaccines for children from 17 to 11. Parents will need to talk to their doctor to get the shots that are no longer recommended for all children.
The Montana Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Montana Medical Association say they will continue recommending the old vaccine schedule.
The CDC says insurance will continue to cover all the vaccines on the previous schedule for anyone who wants them. The agency also said its Vaccines for Children Program, which vaccinates low-income children, will also continue providing the shots.
But some of those vaccines are now recommended only for “high-risk” children. University of Montana Epidemiologist Sophia Newcomer worries that could impact access through the Vaccines for Children program.
“The domino effect here will be less access to those vaccines that are now only recommended for undefined high-risk groups,” she says.
The federal vaccine program provides shots for free. Roughly half of all U.S. children are eligible to get vaccines through the program.
