Republican Sen. Invoice Cassidy on Sunday blasted President Donald Trump’s executive order final week focusing on the childhood vaccine schedule, calling the motion “a silly factor to do.”
“Let’s simply take it from the angle of the mum or dad why this can be a — why that is only a silly factor to do. Now, as an alternative of your little one getting two photographs, she has to get six photographs. As an alternative of … you lacking work to take your little one to the physician two instances, you are doing it six instances, and as an alternative of the insurance coverage firm paying for 2 visits, it is now paying for six visits,” Cassidy, a doctor, advised ABC Information’ “This Week” co-anchor Martha Raddatz. “Now that is going to drive up the price of your life, inconvenience you tremendously, and your kid’s getting six jobs, six jabs, not two.”
He continued, “As a doctor, however as a mum or dad — as a human — I do know that every one that’s mistaken for the household.”
Sen. Invoice Cassidy, R-La., seems on ABC Information’ “This Week” on Aug. 16, 2026.
ABC Information
On Monday, Trump signed an government order recommending fewer vaccinations for kids, in addition to splitting up the MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) vaccine into separate photographs. At present, to be thought of absolutely vaccinated in opposition to the three viruses, people obtain two doses of the mixed vaccine, so separating the vaccine would lead to needing six photographs; the CDC at the moment recommends all kids obtain two doses of the MMR vaccine, the primary between 12 and 15 months and the second between 4 and 6 years previous.
Cassidy stated the rationale the MMR vaccine was mixed within the first place was “to make it extra handy for the mum or dad, to make fewer jabs for the kid.”
“This is the reason the president’s ballot numbers are down, since you’ve overlooked affordability for the mum or dad, you’ve got overlooked the comfort for the American household, you’ve got overlooked that which is driving increased prices in healthcare,” Cassidy argued.
In remarks through the Oval Workplace signing, Trump repeatedly — and erroneously — linked the vaccine to autism with out proof. Researchers have performed many high-quality research for years and haven’t established any connection between autism and vaccines.
In his interview on “This Week,” Cassidy emphasised that vaccines don’t trigger autism.
“There is no proof that vaccines causes (sic) autism, which I feel is the place that is supposed to return from, so it is silly coverage,” he stated.
Cassidy cited Jay Bhattacharya, the present director or the Nationwide Institutes of Well being, additionally saying there’s “no connection.”
“We have to have compassion for these households who’ve a baby with autism. Consider me, I am a physician. I’ve handled sufferers. I perceive the sort of trauma that this brings to a household,” he stated. “As an alternative of spending assets, effort, and a focus making an attempt to really — discover what is actually the trigger (of autism), or the way to really stop, we’re on this little cul-de-sac of one thing which has been completely disproven.”
A medical assistant holds a measles, mumps and rubella vaccine on the pediatric workplace of Dr. Gary M. Kramer in Coral Gables, Fla., on Aug. 13, 2026. President Donald Trump signed an government order on Monday to overtake childhood vaccination coverage.
Joe Raedle/Getty Photographs
Cassidy performed a key function within the affirmation of Well being and Human Providers Secretary Robert F. Kennedy in February 2025. The Louisiana senator expressed critical reservations about Kennedy’s historical past spreading vaccine misinformation, however voted to assist his nomination, permitting it to advance out of committee to a vote on the ground. Cassidy stated that Kennedy and the White Home gave him a number of assurances associated to vaccine coverage.
“Mr. Kennedy and the administration reached out in search of to reassure me relating to their dedication to defending the general public well being advantage of vaccination,” Cassidy stated in a flooring speech explaining his resolution on the time. “He has additionally dedicated that he would work throughout the present vaccine approval and security monitoring programs, and never set up parallel programs.”
“Was he mendacity to you?” Raddatz pressed.
“There are ensures that got to me and ensures that have been supposedly going to be enforced by the White Home, amongst these have been to not have an effect on the [Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices] schedule. So folks can draw their very own conclusions, nevertheless it’s fairly evident,” he stated. “The purpose is, the American folks have been poorly served.”
