Vaccine rates for kindergartners fall as exemptions rise
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Vaccination coverage among American kindergartners decreased for all reported vaccines during the 2024-2025 school year, according to data released Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Why it matters: The drop coincides with measles cases hitting a 33-year high in the U.S., while Trump's Health Department secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., upends long-standing vaccine norms.
What they're saying: "The decision to vaccinate is a personal one," reads a Health Department statement emailed to Axios. "Parents should consult their healthcare providers on options for their families."
- Vaccination remains the "most effective way" to protect children from serious diseases like measles that can lead to "hospitalization and long-term health complications," the statement continues.
By the numbers: Exemptions from one or more vaccines among kindergartners increased to 3.6% from 3.3%, when compared to the 2023-2024 school year.
- Exemptions grew in 36 states and in D.C., and 17 states reported exemption numbers exceeding 5%.
- Idaho and Utah had the highest percentages of kindergartners exempted from one or more vaccines, at 15.4% and 10.3% each, respectively.
- West Virginia and Montana did not report numbers to the CDC.
Zoom out: America is experiencing its highest annual measles rate count since the disease was declared eliminated in 2000.
- As of Tuesday, the CDC has confirmed a total of 1,333 measles cases, and 29 outbreaks have been reported in 2025.
- Of the 1,333 cases, kids under age 5 make up 29% of confirmed cases, and people 5-19 years old make up 37%.
- Nationally, only 92.5% of kindergartners are estimated to be up to date with their measles vaccines, below the CDC's targeted herd immunity level of 95%.
Go deeper: RFK Jr. blows up America's vaccine policy
