U.S. kindergarten vaccination coverage decreased during the 2025-2026 school year, according to data released Monday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The report found that exemptions from one or more required vaccines rose to 4.2%, up from 3.6% in the previous school year. This increase in exemptions occurred across 41 states and Washington, D.C., with 24 states reporting exemption rates higher than 5%.
The decline follows a multi-year trend of falling childhood vaccination rates for measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) that began during the COVID-19 pandemic. The CDC currently reports 2,566 confirmed measles infections in the U.S. so far this year, which the agency identified as the highest number of cases in more than 35 years. The CDC states that a 95% vaccination rate with two doses of the measles vaccine is required to prevent outbreaks and maintain community safety.
For the 2025-2026 school year, vaccination coverage for the MMR and polio vaccines stood at 92.4%, while coverage for the diphtheria, tetanus, and acellular pertussis (DTaP) vaccine was 92%. The CDC reported that more than half of U.S. states saw decreases in coverage for MMR, DTaP, polio, and varicella (chickenpox) vaccines. Approximately 280,000 kindergartners attended school during this period without documentation showing they had completed the full MMR vaccine series.
The financial and health impacts are felt through the increased risk of outbreaks, which can lead to school exclusions for unvaccinated children and potential medical costs for families during infections. Under an executive order signed by President Donald Trump on August 10, 2026, the federal government is now moving toward a modified inoculation schedule that limits childhood vaccinations to 11 immunizations and recommends that the MMR vaccine be administered as three separate shots during different medical visits. Parents and healthcare providers will notice these changes in routine pediatric appointments as the administration seeks to implement what it characterizes as vaccine flexibility.
The drop in coverage may have knock-on effects on state-level school entry requirements and the management of future infectious disease outbreaks. While overall vaccination rates remain above 90%, the 0.1% year-on-year decline in total coverage and the rise in exemptions set a precedent for shifting immunization practices in public education. The next major milestone for this policy will be the implementation of the new 11-immunization schedule and the transition to separate MMR shots, though specific effective dates for these clinical changes were not reported.