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Getting the latest healthcare news for you
President Trump signed an executive order to separate the MMR vaccine into three individual shots, but experts and manufacturers say there's no scientific evidence supporting the move. The process could take up to 10 years, require significant new infrastructure, and result in children receiving more shots while remaining vulnerable longer — all during the worst measles outbreak in over 30 years.
President Trump signed an executive order earlier this month directing federal officials to develop plans for breaking up the combined MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) vaccine into three separate shots. Public health experts and vaccine manufacturers have been swift to push back, saying there is no scientific evidence that separating the vaccines would improve safety or outcomes — and that the process could take up to 10 years and tens of millions of dollars to complete.
Currently, no individual measles, mumps, or rubella vaccines are FDA-approved in the U.S. — the combination shot has been the standard since the early 1970s. Splitting it up would require full clinical trials, new manufacturing facilities (which alone take roughly 5 years to build and approve), and separate FDA licensure for each new product. Manufacturers GSK and Merck both confirmed they stand by the combined vaccine and have no plans to unbundle it.
The policy would also work against its own stated goals: instead of reducing shots, splitting the MMR would increase the number of injections from 2 to 6, likely driving down vaccination rates as families miss more appointments.
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Why it matters: The U.S. is in the midst of its worst measles outbreak in over three decades. Experts warn that casting doubt on the MMR vaccine's safety — with no scientific justification — risks further eroding public trust in vaccines at exactly the wrong moment.
