OB-GYN association, deviating from CDC guidance, issues its own vaccine recommendations

Health OB-GYN association, deviating from CDC guidance, issues its own vaccine recommendations Group calls for four shots to be routinely administered in pregnancy Manage alerts for this article Email this article Share this article By Helen BranswellJune 10, 2026 Infectious Diseases Correspondent Helen BranswellHelen Branswell covers issues broadly related to infectious diseases, including outbreaks, preparedness, research, and vaccine development. Follow her on Mastodon and Bluesky. You can reach Helen on Signal at hbranswell.01. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists has released a recommended vaccine schedule for pregnant people, one that diverges from the advice currently offered by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. ACOG is recommending four vaccines be routinely administered during pregnancy, with several other vaccines recommended under certain circumstances. The new schedule is endorsed by 13 medical societies and health organizations.Advertisement “Changing national recommendations coupled with rampant vaccine misinformation are resulting in confusion for both patients and health care professionals,” ACOG President Camille Clare said in a press release. “It is incredibly important for the public to have access to reliable, evidence-based information on maternal immunizations from a trusted source. ACOG is proud to be that source.” The current CDC vaccine schedule for pregnant people includes only two recommendations, one for a vaccine to protect against tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis, known as Tdap, and one to generate protection against respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, in the developing fetus. The CDC recommends one dose of the Tdap vaccine for each pregnancy, preferably between gestational weeks 27 and 36. For RSV, only Pfizer’s Abrysvo is approved for use and only in one pregnancy. In any subsequent pregnancies, infants should be protected against RSV via a monoclonal antibody injection at birth during the RSV season — which generally begins in the early autumn and can run through March or April — or at the beginning of the season, if the birth occurred at another time of the year.Advertisement Previous CDC recommendations that pregnant people receive influenza and Covid-19 vaccinations during each pregnancy have been withdrawn under Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s leadership of the Department of Health and Human Services. ACOG recommends that pregnant people receive Tdap, RSV, influenza, and Covid shots during pregnancy. As with the CDC’s recommendation, ACOG said at this time pregnant people should only receive an RSV shot during one pregnancy. That is because the appropriate schedule for giving RSV booster shots is still unclear. The ACOG schedule recommends pregnant people receive flu and Covid shot shots in the autumn, though it notes vaccination can occur at any point in the year. Tdap can also be given at any point in the year; the RSV vaccine for pregnant people is recommended for the period from September to January of any given RSV season. Laura Riley, chair of obstetrics and gynecology at Weill Cornell Medicine in New York, said ACOG’s recommendations were needed to clear up a situation that has become murky. She noted vaccinating against Covid during pregnancy not only protects the pregnant person, but also newborns, since they are too young to be vaccinated immediately after birth. For some pregnant people considered to be at risk or who have missed vaccinations previously, the association also recommended vaccines to protect against pneumococcal disease, meningococcal disease, hepatitis A, and hepatitis B. The ACOG schedule also outlines vaccines recommended for people while breastfeeding and during the postpartum period. The association’s decision to issue its own vaccination guidance is reflective of the falling out multiple health professional organizations have had with the CDC over vaccine policy under Kennedy’s leadership. A longtime critic of vaccination, Kennedy fired the expert panel that advised the CDC on vaccine use in June 2025, replacing it with individuals who shared his skepticism of vaccines. In the intervening time, the committee has revised the vaccination schedules for various age groups and demographics to lower the number of vaccines recommended for all individuals.Advertisement ACOG, long a liaison member of the expert panel, subsequently withdrew from it. A federal court in March issued a preliminary ruling against many of the vaccine-related actions Kennedy has initiated. The CDC’s expert advisory committee on vaccines, called the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, is in limbo, though there have been reports that Kennedy intends to reformulate the panel. HHS has appealed the ruling. CDC, public health, reproductive health, Vaccines Submit a correction requestReprints Helen Branswell Infectious Diseases Correspondent Helen Branswell covers issues broadly related to infectious diseases, including outbreaks, preparedness, research, and vaccine development. Follow her on Mastodon and Bluesky. You can reach Helen on Signal at hbranswell.01. 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