West Coast States Issue Their Own COVID, Flu, RSV Vaccine Rules

FRIDAY, Sept. 19, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Four Western states are taking a different approach from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on vaccines for COVID-19, flu and RSV.

California, Hawaii, Oregon and Washington — now working together as the West Coast Health Alliance — issued joint guidance Wednesday encouraging broader vaccine use than what’s recommended today by the CDC.

Their advice includes COVID-19 vaccination for children ages six months to 23 months, adults 65 and older, younger adults with health risks and anyone who is pregnant or planning to get pregnant.

The alliance also recommends flu shots for everyone six months and older and RSV shots for all babies, adults ages 50 to 74 with health risks and everyone 75 and older.

The states said their decisions are based on science, not politics, CBS News reported.

“Public health leaders warn these moves dismantle independent, science-based oversight and inject politics into decisions that protect Americans’ health,” the alliance said in a statement.

The recommendations closely match what the CDC had advised until earlier this year, when Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. reshaped the agency’s vaccine committee and rolled back some guidance, including shots for young children and pregnant women.

Meanwhile, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a new law allowing the state to also rely on independent medical groups, such as the California Department of Public Health (CDPH), instead of the CDC’s vaccine committee only when setting insurance coverage rules for vaccines.

Folks at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) pushed back.

"Democrat-run states that pushed unscientific school lockdowns, toddler mask mandates, and draconian vaccine passports during the COVID era completely eroded the American people's trust in public health agencies," agency spokesperson Andrew Nixon said. "HHS will ensure policy is based on rigorous evidence and Gold Standard Science, not the failed politics of the pandemic."

Other states have also split from CDC guidance. Colorado, Illinois, Massachusetts, New Mexico and Pennsylvania have issued their own recommendations, while Florida recently said it plans to phase out all childhood vaccine mandates, CBS News said.

More information

The National Foundation for Infectious Diseases has more on vaccine reccomendations.

SOURCE: CBS News, Sept. 17, 2025

What This Means For You

If you live in California, Hawaii, Oregon or Washington, your doctor may follow state guidance on vaccines instead of the CDC’s.