Dr. Mehmet Oz, the head of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), stated during a Sunday interview that the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine is not lethal. His comments followed questions regarding previous assertions made by President Donald Trump concerning the safety of the combined vaccine.
Earlier in August 2026, President Trump signed an executive order to change federal vaccine recommendations, proposing that the MMR vaccine be split into three separate shots. During the signing, the President stated there is a "possibility they are quite lethal" when administered together, though he said they are "very effective" when given separately. The President did not provide evidence to support the claim of lethality.
During an interview on CBS' "Face the Nation," host Margaret Brennan asked Dr. Oz three times to clarify the President's remarks. Oz initially stated that the administration wants patients to consult doctors and noted that it is difficult for parents to answer related questions. After Brennan noted that Merck does not offer the vaccine in three separate shots in the United States, Oz stated, "The MMR vaccine is not a lethal vaccine."
The scale of the vaccine's use is extensive, with more than 800 million doses of the Merck MMR vaccine administered in over 75 countries since 2021. In the United States, the vaccine has been in use for more than 40 years. Because individual shots for measles, mumps, and rubella are not currently available in the U.S. market, a shift toward separate injections would require pharmaceutical manufacturers to change production and seek new regulatory approvals. This would fundamentally alter the standard immunization schedule for American students and toddlers, who currently receive the combination shot.
The dispute over vaccine safety occurs amid reports of the largest measles outbreak in three decades in 2025. The administration's focus on vaccine policy has led to several recent public disagreements between health officials and journalists, including interviews with NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya and HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. While the executive order has been signed, the specific timeline for when or if manufacturers will begin producing separate components of the MMR vaccine for the U.S. market remains not reported. Moves to implement the order would likely involve the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH).