Recently, the Vaccine Advisory Committee of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Immunization Practice Advisory Committee voted to withdraw a decades-old recommendation that all newborns should receive the hepatitis B vaccine soon after birth. According to Nature, the initiative is linked to a sharp decline in mother-to-child transmission of the hepatitis B virus in the country. ACIP suggests that it is still recommended to get the hepatitis B vaccine for newborns whose mother has tested positive for hepatitis B virus or whose infection status is unknown; however, for newborns whose mother has tested negative for hepatitis B virus, it is possible to decide whether to get vaccinated according to specific circumstances. ACIP also suggests that infants who have not received the first dose of hepatitis B vaccine at birth can begin vaccination no earlier than two months of age. However, ACIP's recommendations must be approved by the CDC Director before they become their official policy.

Recently, the Vaccine Advisory Committee of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Immunization Practice Advisory Committee voted to withdraw a decades-old recommendation that all newborns should receive the hepatitis B vaccine soon after birth. According to Nature, the initiative is linked to a sharp decline in mother-to-child transmission of the hepatitis B virus in the country. ACIP suggests that it is still recommended to get the hepatitis B vaccine for newborns whose mother has tested positive for hepatitis B virus or whose infection status is unknown; however, for newborns whose mother has tested negative for hepatitis B virus, it is possible to decide whether to get vaccinated according to specific circumstances. ACIP also suggests that infants who have not received the first dose of hepatitis B vaccine at birth can begin vaccination no earlier than two months of age. However, ACIP's recommendations must be approved by the CDC Director before they become their official policy.