I have spent 40 years as a pediatrician reassuring parents that vaccines are safe. No medical intervention is perfect, but childhood vaccines are among the most thoroughly studied and closely monitored tools we have to protect children from serious and sometimes deadly diseases.

The president’s decision to use an executive order to promote a vaccine schedule based on personal beliefs rather than decades of medical evidence is deeply irresponsible. Unnecessarily delaying vaccines or spreading them out across multiple visits can leave children vulnerable to preventable diseases when they are at greatest risk. This decision creates confusion and fear for parents who are trying to make the best decisions for their children.

The overwhelming scientific evidence is clear: vaccines do not cause autism, and decades of research have repeatedly confirmed their safety and effectiveness.

Parents should be able to trust that vaccine recommendations are based on medical evidence by physicians and medical experts, not political agendas or the personal views of elected officials. When political leaders undermine established medical science, they erode public confidence in vaccines and put children at risk.

A physician's responsibility is to follow the evidence and protect our patients. I urge parents to talk with their child’s physician and follow the vaccine recommendations developed by medical experts to keep their children healthy and protected.”

Source: California Medical Association