The CDC has delayed allowing states to order updated COVID-19 vaccines for children through federal programmes, creating uncertainty as the respiratory virus season approaches. The delay could restrict access for children who rely on free or publicly funded vaccinations, and appears to reflect officials’ unresolved questions about whether children should receive the shots.

Around 52% of US children are eligible for the Vaccines for Children programme, while at least 11 states and American Samoa use related purchasing arrangements to provide vaccines universally. The Department of Health and Human Services said procurement decisions under the VFC and Section 317 programmes had not been finalised, without explaining the delay; current CDC guidance allows vaccination for healthy children through shared clinical decision-making and recommends it for moderately or severely immunocompromised children.