Kindergarten Routine Vaccination Rates Continue to Decline

As measles cases rise across the U.S., children’s routine vaccination rates continue to decline while exemptions from school vaccination requirements, particularly non-medical exemptions, have increased. In a new analysis, KFF finds that about 280,000 kindergarteners were unvaccinated against measles in the 2025–2026 school year, and for the sixth year in a row, MMR vaccinations fell below the 95% level needed to prevent community transmission.

Affordable Care Act

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