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The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), long criticized for controversial positions on children’s health, announced Monday that it supports eliminating religious exemptions for vaccines and expanding immunization requirements for all children aged six months and older.
The group’s new policy comes as childhood vaccination rates have declined nationally following widespread skepticism surrounding the COVID-19 vaccine. At the same time, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is preparing to launch a long-overdue investigation into the effects of the extensive childhood vaccine schedule.
The AAP has previously backed gender-transition procedures for minors, advocating for treatments many consider extreme. It even dismissed findings from an evidence-based HHS review questioning the safety and necessity of certain irreversible procedures. Critics argue that the organization prioritizes political ideology over scientific integrity.
Now, the AAP is calling on state lawmakers to abolish all “nonmedical” vaccine exemptions—including those based on religious belief—and mandate routine influenza vaccinations for pregnant women and children as young as six months.
“Are we in some dystopian rerun of 2020?” said Dr. Kat Lindley, director of the Independent Medical Association’s Fellowship Program, in a press release. “The AAP’s tone-deaf proposal ignores the hard lessons of the COVID-19 era. Parents aren’t sheep, and they’re done with government-funded healthcare bureaucrats playing doctor with their kids. Forcing medical decisions through heavy-handed mandates is a dangerous overreach. If the AAP thinks it can bully families into submission, it’s in for a rude awakening — parents are ready to fight for their rights. This isn’t leadership; it’s a power grab that could cost the AAP its credibility in healthcare.”
The AAP claims that religious objections to vaccination are largely unfounded and not based in major faith traditions.
“Among the major world religious traditions, none include scriptural or doctrinal guidelines that preclude adherents from being vaccinated,” the AAP stated. “Perspectives on vaccines might be drawn from religious traditions that developed independently of the major world religions as well as from the diverse denominational perspectives that exist within major religions. Just as with other types of doctrines, those related to vaccines might even be developed by small communities or individuals in ways that are completely independent from antecedent scriptural or doctrinal traditions but are, nonetheless, thought of as ‘religious’ commitments by those who hold them.”
Despite this stance, only five U.S. states currently do not allow religious exemptions. As the AAP acknowledged, “Forty-five states allow religious beliefs to be used as a basis for an exemption, and 15 states allow ‘personal beliefs,’ ‘philosophical,’ or ‘conscientious objection’ exemptions. Some states explicitly exclude ‘philosophical’ and ‘personal belief’ exemptions and define these as not falling under the scope of religious exemptions.”
Concerns from parents about vaccines developed using fetal cell lines or about the safety of COVID-19 vaccines are dismissed by the AAP. The organization asserts that religious or philosophical objections complicate school vaccination policies and weaken public health measures.
“Nonmedical exceptions based on religious belief can substantially limit the public health value of vaccine requirements for school attendance,” the policy states. “The AAP recommends that all states, territories, and the District of Columbia eliminate all nonmedical exemptions from immunizations as a condition of school attendance. In addition, states and territories should develop policies to ensure that any medical exemptions are appropriate and evidence based.”
In its effort to minimize exemptions, the AAP is urging pediatricians not to support or facilitate any nonmedical exemption requests.
“The AAP recommends that pediatricians continue to counsel their families who request nonmedical exemptions and that they not participate in vetting or endorsing applications for nonmedical exemptions from immunization as a condition of attending child care and school,” the statement reads.
Critics argue that the broader American medical establishment, including the AAP, has benefited financially from its close relationship with pharmaceutical companies, while manufacturers of vaccines enjoy legal immunity in injury cases.
As The Federalist previously reported, the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP)—a key player in vaccine policy—was until recently populated with members who had financial ties to vaccine makers. These members were replaced in June by HHS officials in an effort to bring greater objectivity to the process. This shake-up led to the launch of an unprecedented review of the childhood vaccine schedule.
HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. also announced Monday reforms to the Vaccine Injury Compensation Program (VICP), which he said has become mired in inefficiency and bias.
“The VICP routinely dismisses meritorious cases outright or drags them out for years. Instead of ‘quickly and fairly’ awarding compensation, Special Masters dismiss over half of the cases,” Kennedy said. “Most of those that proceed typically take 5+ years to resolve, with many languishing for more than 10 years as parents struggle to care for children suffering with often extreme disabilities.”
Breccan F. Thies is a correspondent for The Federalist. He previously reported on education and cultural issues for the Washington Examiner and Breitbart News.
