CDC Confirms Plan to Add COVID-19 Vaccines to Childhood Immunization Schedule

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) headquarters in Atlanta on April 23, 2020. Tami Chappell/AFP via Getty Images

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Oct. 19 confirmed plans to add COVID-19 vaccines to the child immunization schedule, which could lead to the vaccines being mandated for school children in some states.

“As we'll be discussing today and tomorrow, incorporation of the COVID-19 vaccines in the immunization schedule and the Vaccines for Children (VFC) program is an important step towards inclusion of COVID-19 vaccines in a routine vaccination program,” Dr. Sara Oliver, a CDC official, told a panel of agency advisers during a meeting on Oct. 19.