WASHINGTON: A new study reveals that hepatitis B vaccination rates in newborns in the United States had been declining for more than two years before the CDC officially stopped recommending the birth dose in December 2025.

Published in JAMA the study analyzed health records from Epic Systems covering over 12 million babies born from 2017 to 2025. Vaccination rates rose from 67.5% in 2017 to a peak of 83.5% in February 2023 before falling to 73.2% by August 2025. Researchers linked the decline to growing public debates on vaccines, including COVID-19-related hesitancy and media discussions.

Hepatitis B can cause severe liver disease and long-term infection in infants. Dr Joshua Rothman called the birth dose a safety net protecting babies when maternal infection is missed or follow up care is delayed.

In December 2025 under Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. the CDC’s ACIP voted 8/3 to end routine birth-dose vaccination for babies of mothers testing negative leaving the decision to parents and doctors. Experts caution that while infections have not yet risen close monitoring is critical to avoid reversing decades of progress in protecting children.