SACRAMENTO — California Governor Gavin Newsom on Wednesday signed legislation granting the state authority to establish its own vaccine schedules, departing from decades of reliance on the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The move coincided with a joint announcement from the West Coast Health Alliance, a partnership among California, Oregon, Washington, and Hawaii, which issued updated recommendations for COVID-19, influenza, and RSV immunizations.
“Our states are united in putting science, safety, and transparency first, and in protecting families with clear, credible vaccine guidance,” said the governors in a joint statement.
Thorvardur de Shong
The legislation, AB 144, authorizes the California Department of Public Health to base future immunization guidance on recommendations from independent medical organizations such as the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, rather than the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, which Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr recently reshaped.
“The loss of critical federal funding awarded to the University of California presents an unprecedented and perilous moment for the state and its communities,” said Theresa Maldonado, UC vice president for research and innovation, referencing a proposed $23 billion ballot measure to replace federal research dollars lost to Trump-era cuts.
The new West Coast recommendations include COVID-19 vaccination for all children aged 6 months to 23 months, as well as children and adults with risk factors, and all pregnant and postpartum individuals. The alliance also recommends influenza vaccination for everyone 6 months and older and RSV vaccination for infants under 8 months, adults 75 and older, and younger adults with risk factors.
Health experts emphasize that vaccines remain one of the safest and most effective tools in modern medicine. Extensive clinical trials and decades of real-world data show that vaccines not only protect individuals from serious illness but also reduce the spread of disease across communities. Public health leaders note that while mild side effects such as soreness at the injection site or fatigue are common, serious adverse events are infrequent, and the overall benefits of immunization far outweigh the risks.
“We want the people who live and work in our states to know that there is a strong public health, healthcare and scientific community that will continue to stand together to provide and use the data and evidence needed for you to make healthy choices, and we are here to protect our communities,” said Dr. Erica Pan, director of the California Department of Public Health.
California officials argue the shift is necessary given what they describe as the CDC’s politicization under current federal leadership. Kennedy, a longtime vaccine skeptic, has defended the changes, telling the Senate Finance Committee earlier this month, “They deserve the truth and that’s what we’re going to give them for the first time in the history of the agency.”
The West Coast Health Alliance, launched earlier this month, was created to preserve scientific integrity in public health. At its inception, Newsom said, “President Trump’s mass firing of CDC doctors and scientists, and his blatant politicization of the agency, is a direct assault on the health and safety of the American people. The CDC has become a political tool that increasingly peddles ideology instead of science, an ideology that will lead to severe health consequences. California, Oregon, and Washington will not allow the people of our states to be put at risk.”
With the new framework, insurers regulated by California will be required to cover vaccines recommended by the state, ensuring residents retain access despite changes in federal policy.
