WASHINGTON, DC -- In response to the Trump Administration’s arbitrary and unscientific changes to the childhood vaccine schedule announcement today, U.S. Senator Jack Reed (D-RI) issued the following statement:

“It is astounding that at the same time the Trump Administration is making health care more expensive for families it is weakening the health of children and our communities.

“U.S. vaccine policy has long followed the science based on what medical experts in the U.S. recommend is best for children’s health. The Secretary of Health and Human Services is not a doctor, a public health expert, nor a vaccine scientist. This unilateral, non-transparent decision upends that entirely. It isn’t based on science. It will spread confusion and disease. It will weaken public trust in health. And it will likely increase preventable deaths of innocent children.”