The U.S. has dropped the number of vaccines it recommends for every child, going from 17 to 11 routine vaccines. Vaccines like flu, rotavirus, hepatitis A and B, RSV and some meningitis shots are no longer broadly recommended for all kids. Instead, those vaccines are only recommended for certain groups deemed high-risk. Epidemiologist Michael Osterholm of the Vaccine Integrity Project said, “Abandoning recommendations for vaccines that prevent influenza, hepatitis and rotavirus, and changing the recommendation for HPV without a public process to weigh the risks and benefits, will lead to more hospitalizations and preventable deaths among American children.” Republican Senator Bill Cassidy, a physician who voted for Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s confirmation as Health and Human Services secretary, sharply criticized the new vaccine schedule, saying it's based on “no scientific input.” It comes as new U.S. flu cases surged over the holidays, already surpassing the flu epidemic of last winter, which was one of the harshest in recent years. The CDC estimates at least 11 million flu illnesses, 120,000 hospitalizations and 5,000 deaths this season.