Recommended Childhood Vaccines

Diseases Prevented

• Diphtheria: Caused by a type of bacteria. It leads to the formation of a thick membrane over the throat or tonsils, making it hard to breathe or swallow. It can also spread through the bloodstream, potentially causing damage to the heart, nerves, and kidneys. Even with treatment, about one in 10 people with diphtheria will die.
• Tetanus (lockjaw): Caused by a type of bacteria that lives naturally in the soil and usually enters the body through a puncture or wound. It affects the nervous system, causing spasms. Tetanus is rare but very dangerous; two in 10 cases in the U.S. are fatal.
• Pertussis (whooping cough): Caused by a type of bacteria and results in uncontrollable, often violent coughing typically for one to six weeks. It is highly contagious and can lead to slowed breathing, seizures, brain inflammation, and in rare cases, death. About 30% of babies under age 1 who get pertussis need hospitalization. Most cases occur in children under 5.

Schedule for Most Children

• DTaP (5 doses): 2 months, 4 months, 6 months, 15 to 18 months, 4 to 6 years
• Tdap (1 dose): 11 to 12 years

Real-World Impact

• Diphtheria: At its peak, about 150,000 cases of diphtheria occurred in the U.S. every year. With vaccination, we now see fewer than one case per year.
• Tetanus: Since vaccination began, tetanus rates in the U.S. have decreased by 98%.
• Pertussis: Before the vaccine became available in the 1940s, about 200,000 children in the U.S. got pertussis each year and thousands died. Since vaccination began, cases in the U.S. dropped by 99%. In recent years, decreases in vaccination and waning immunity have led to a resurgence, with over 35,000 reported cases in the U.S. in 2024.

Diseases Prevented

• Haemophilus influenzae type B (Hib) disease: Caused by a type of bacteria and can lead to severe infections throughout the body, including pneumonia (lung infection), meningitis (infection of the brain and spinal cord), and septic arthritis (infection in the joints). It is most serious in babies under 1 year old.

Schedule for Most Children

• 4 doses: 2 months, 4 months, 6 months, 12 to 15 months

Real-World Impact

• Before the vaccine was available, each year, Hib caused meningitis in about 20,000 children under age five in the U.S. and about 1,000 child deaths. Since vaccination began, Hib rates have decreased by more than 99%.

Diseases Prevented

• Hepatitis A: Caused by a virus that attacks the liver. It causes fever, exhaustion, loss of appetite, nausea, stomach pain, dark urine, and jaundice (yellowing of the skin or eyes). Symptoms can last up to 6 months.

Schedule for Most Children

• 2 doses: at least 6 months apart, at age 12 to 23 months

Real-World Impact

• Since vaccination began, Hepatitis A rates in the U.S. have decreased by 87%.

Diseases Prevented

• Hepatitis B: Caused by a virus that attacks the liver and causes short-term and long-term illness. There is no cure, and long-term illness can lead to liver damage (cirrhosis), liver failure, liver cancer, and death. If babies get infected during their first year of life, 90% will develop long-term illness. One in four children who get hepatitis B will die later in life from liver disease or liver cancer.

Schedule for Most Children

• 3 doses: birth, 1 to 2 months, 6 to 18 months

Real-World Impact

• Before hepatitis B vaccination was recommended for all newborns, nearly 18,000 children in the U.S. got infected each year before age 10. About half of these infections happened during childbirth. After doctors began giving the hepatitis B vaccine at birth and during infancy, infections in children and teens dropped by 95%.

Diseases Prevented

• Human papillomavirus (HPV) infection: Caused by a virus. This infection is the most common sexually transmitted infection (STI) in the U.S., affecting over 40 million people. While most HPV infections clear on their own, some will lead to cancer. HPV still causes about 35,000 cases of cancer per year in the U.S.

Schedule for Most Children

• 2 doses if started before 15 years (recommended), 3 doses if started after 15 years

Real-World Impact

• The vaccine prevents up to 90% of six types of cancers caused by HPV: cancers of the cervix, vagina, vulva, penis, anus, and throat.

Diseases Prevented

• Invasive meningococcal disease: Caused by a type of bacteria. It can lead to meningitis (infection of the brain and spinal cord), sepsis (blood infection), and pneumonia (lung infection). Though rare, it can be fatal, with children under one year of age at highest risk. Outbreaks can happen in childcare centers and schools. The disease can get worse very quickly, and a healthy child can fall into a coma within hours.

Schedule for Most Children

• Meningococcal ACWY vaccination: 2 doses, at 11 to 12 years and 16 years
• Meningococcal B vaccination: 2 doses, at least 6 months apart, at age 16 to 23 years

Real-World Impact

• The vaccines are 70 to 90% effective at preventing illness.

Diseases Prevented

• Measles: Caused by a virus. Symptoms include fever and rash. Complications include pneumonia (lung infection), encephalitis (brain swelling), ear infections, convulsions, deafness, and mental delays. Measles can also weaken the immune system for years after recovery from the initial infection.
• Mumps: Caused by a virus. Symptoms include fever, headache, and painful swelling of the salivary glands (located below the ear). Complications include meningitis (infection of the brain and spinal cord), deafness, and orchitis, which is swelling of the testicles. Orchitis happens in up to one out of three males who get infected.
• Rubella (German measles): Caused by a virus. It is usually not serious in children, causing a mild rash on the face. However, it is very dangerous during pregnancy. If a person gets it early in pregnancy, the baby has an 80% chance of birth defects, including hearing loss, vision problems, heart problems, or delays in development.

Schedule for Most Children

• 2 doses: 12 months, 4 to 6 years

Real-World Impact

• Before measles vaccination started in 1963, about 3 to 4 million people in the U.S. got measles each year. Each year, around 400 to 500 people died, 48,000 were hospitalized, and 1,000 developed encephalitis, which is swelling of the brain. Measles was declared eliminated from the United States in 2000 due to high vaccination rates. However, recent outbreaks, mostly among unvaccinated children, threaten this status.
• Before mumps vaccine was available in the United States, most children got mumps by the time they reached adolescence. Vaccination has also led to a drop of more than 99% in mumps cases. The MMR vaccine has also almost eliminated congenital rubella syndrome. Before the rubella vaccine, as many as 20,000 babies were born every year with birth defects caused by rubella virus.  

Diseases Prevented

• Pneumococcal diseases: Caused by a type of bacteria. Most infections are mild, but some lead to serious health problems or death, especially in young children. Complications include sepsis (blood infection), pneumonia (lung infection), meningitis (infection of the brain and spinal cord) and hearing loss or repeated ear infections that may need surgery.

Schedule for Most Children

• 4 doses: 2 months, 4 months, 6 months, 12 to 15 months

Real-World Impact

• Since the PCV vaccine was introduced in the U.S., doctor visits for ear infections in children under 5 have dropped by 41%. Hospital stays for pneumonia in this age group have gone down by 66-79%. An estimated 2,780 deaths have been prevented.

Diseases Prevented

• Polio: Caused by a virus that spreads through contaminated food or water or close contact with an infected person. Symptoms include fever, tiredness, stiff neck, and sudden muscle weakness. Polio can lead to meningitis (infection of the brain and spinal cord), paralysis, and death.

Schedule for Most Children

• 4 doses: 2 months, 4 months, 6 to 18 months, 4 to 6 years

Real-World Impact

• At its peak before vaccination, polio caused 20,000 cases of paralysis in the U.S. each year. Since vaccination began, polio cases have decreased by over 99% and polio now is considered eliminated in the U.S.

Diseases Prevented

• Rotavirus: Caused by a virus that attacks the lining of the intestines. Symptoms include diarrhea, vomiting, and fever. Rotavirus is one of the most common causes of severe dehydration in infants.

Schedule for Most Children

• 2 to 3 doses: 2 months, 4 months, 6 months

Real-World Impact

• Before the vaccine, each year in the U.S., between 55,000 and 70,000 children were hospitalized with rotavirus and 20 to 60 children died. Since the vaccine’s introduction in 2006, hospitalizations for rotavirus among children under 5 in the U.S. have decreased by 85-90%.

Diseases Prevented

• Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV): Caused by a virus and is most common in fall or winter. It usually causes mild, cold-like symptoms, but can be serious in infants, young children, and older adults. It is the top reason babies are hospitalized in the U.S., causing 58,000-80,000 hospitalizations in children under 5 each year.

Schedule for Most Children

All infants should be protected against RSV through one of these options:

• Vaccine (Abrysvo) given to pregnant people during 32 to 36 weeks of gestation who have not received RSV vaccine during a prior pregnancy
• Monoclonal antibodies (nirsevimab or clesrovimab) given to infants less than 8 months of age

The monoclonal antibody nirsevimab is also recommended for children 8 to 19 months who are at increased risk of severe RSV and entering their second RSV season.

Real-World Impact

• Monoclonal antibodies are 80 to 90% effective in preventing severe RSV in infants. The RSV vaccine given to pregnant people is 57% effective in preventing RSV hospitalizations for infants.

Diseases Prevented

• Varicella zoster (chickenpox): Caused by a highly contagious virus. Symptoms include body aches and an itchy rash all over the body. Newborns are at high risk for serious complications, such as skin infections, pneumonia (lung infection), encephalitis (brain swelling), sepsis (blood infection), and bleeding problems. Later in life, the virus can reactivate in people who had chickenpox, causing shingles, a painful nerve condition.

Schedule for Most Children

• 2 doses: 12 to 15 months, 4 to 6 years

Real-world Impact

• Before the vaccine, most children got chickenpox. In the U.S., there were over 4 million cases each year, resulting in 10,500 to 13,500 hospitalizations and up to 150 deaths annually. Half of those deaths were in children. Since the vaccine was introduced in 1995, hospitalizations for chickenpox for people under 20 have dropped by 97%, and deaths in this age group are now almost gone.

Diseases Prevented

• Influenza (flu): Caused by a virus and is most common in fall and winter. Symptoms include fever, cough, sore throat, and body aches. The most common complication of flu is pneumonia (lung infection). Children under 5, older adults, and people with certain health conditions are at the highest risk. Hundreds of children die from the flu in the U.S. every year. During the 2024–2025 flu season, 280 children died from flu and 89% of them were unvaccinated.

Schedule for Most Children

• 1 dose every year for children 6 months and older

Real-World Impact

• From 2015 to 2020, flu vaccines helped prevent about 55% of emergency room visits or hospital stays for flu in children 6 months to 17 years old.

Diseases Prevented

• COVID-19: Caused by a virus. Symptoms include fever, cough, sore throat, runny nose, and trouble breathing. Anyone can get very sick, but it is most dangerous for children under 2, pregnant people, older adults, and people with underlying health conditions. In children, it can cause MIS-C (multisystem inflammatory syndrome), which leads to swelling in the heart, lungs, kidneys, and other organs.  

Schedule for Most Children

• 1 dose every year for children 6 months and older after initial series

Real-World Impact

• Vaccination continues to protect children from severe outcomes from COVID-19. From 2024 to 2025, COVID-19 vaccination was linked to a 76% reduction in emergency or urgent care visits for children aged 9 months to 4 years.