US vaccination rates fall again as exemptions continue to rise, CDC data shows
Summary
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that vaccination rates for U.S. kindergartners have dropped again for the 2025–2026 school year. At the same time, the number of children exempted from vaccines for personal or religious reasons has increased.Key Facts
- Only 92.4% of kindergartners received the MMR vaccine in 2025–2026, below the 95% threshold needed to prevent disease outbreaks.
- Vaccination rates for other vaccines like DTaP (diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough) also declined slightly.
- More than half of U.S. states saw decreases in vaccination coverage for several common vaccines.
- Nonmedical exemptions rose from 3.2% to 4% of kindergartners between 2024–2025 and 2025–2026.
- Medical exemptions remained steady at 0.2%.
- Twenty-four states now have exemption rates of 5% or higher, which is too high to reach the 95% vaccination goal.
- Measles cases in the U.S. are at a 34-year high and the country is close to losing its measles elimination status.
- President Donald Trump and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. recently supported reducing the number of child vaccines recommended, despite lacking scientific support.
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