In a move that has public health experts reaching for the nearest bottle of hand sanitizer, Donald Trump has signed an executive order in the Oval Office to split the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine into three separate shots.
"You should have five separate visits for vaccines rather than giving them all in the same day," the president declared, presumably adding a sixth visit for the paperwork. He also announced that his administration would no longer recommend hepatitis B, Covid-19, and influenza shots for children, because why not turn back the clock on decades of medical progress?
Trump then waded into the tired, debunked territory of vaccine-autism claims, saying, "Decades ago, children received only a small fraction of the vaccines required today. In those times, people were much healthy, and of course, the high rates of autism now observed did not exist. So there's a reason for such epidemic rates of autism, and we're going to bring it back to much closer to where it was." This, despite the overwhelming scientific consensus that there is no proven link between inoculations and autism. But who needs science when you have vibes?
Meanwhile, the political circus continues as members of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) are calling for Republican Congressman Max Miller to step aside amid allegations of domestic violence. DCCC spokesperson Riya Vashi called the allegations "horrific" and "credible," adding, "Rather than step aside, Miller has chosen to cling to power and put his family and his constituents through a public spectacle of his own making." Miller's Democratic challenger in Ohio's 7th District, ironworker Brian Poindexter, was less diplomatic: "He should be in prison, not in Congress." Poindexter added that his campaign's doors are open to anyone "who believes their representative should serve with honor and work for Ohioans," which sounds like a novel concept.
In other maritime news, the Trump administration has extended for 90 days a waiver allowing foreign-flagged ships carrying oil and gas to travel between US ports. White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers announced the extension, effective 17 August, applies to the Jones Act, a 1920 law requiring US ships for domestic shipping. Rogers claimed the waiver has "driven a significant increase in domestic deliveries of essential products such as gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel." But new limits will apply the waiver only to energy and agricultural commodities, because apparently shipbuilders and Congress members complained that the policy was undermining the domestic maritime industry. The waiver comes as the Strait of Hormuz remains effectively closed due to the war, which is a bit of an inconvenience for oil shipping.
Speaking of Iran, Trump told reporters that the US retains the full capability to escalate actions against Iran if it chooses. "We have certainly that ability if we want to do that," he said, adding the cryptic, "You'll find out." He also doubled down on his demand that Iran pay for "the damage they've done over a 50-year period," rather than the US paying for the damage caused by the bombardment in Iran over the past five months. "If there's damages to be paid, I think Iran should pay those damages," he said, conveniently ignoring that the war was launched by the US and Israel.
In a related development, Todd Blanche was officially sworn in as attorney general, having been narrowly confirmed by the Senate with every Democrat voting against him. Meanwhile, lawyers for Olympian David Hearn, who was arrested for alleged property destruction of the reflecting pool before charges were dropped, say the Trump administration is "continuing to attack an innocent man." Trump had insisted on Truth Social that Hearn was still guilty, despite the Justice Department dismissing all charges and citing the "botched" renovation of the pool as the reason for the peeling lining. Because of course.
The administration has repeatedly pointed to Europe as a model, claiming EU countries don't require childhood vaccinations. In reality, 12 EU nations mandate certain vaccines for children, including France, Germany, Italy, Hungary, Croatia, Bulgaria, Czechia, Latvia, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia, all of which require measles vaccination for infants. As my colleague Melody Schreiber notes, there are no separately licensed vaccines for measles, mumps, and rubella, and the licensing process takes years. So, good luck with that, Mr. President.
These changes to the childhood vaccine schedule were first suggested by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) earlier this year, but were blocked by a federal judge. Expect more legal challenges to this latest attempt to overhaul the immunization schedule, because nothing says "freedom" like a good courtroom battle over public health.