Acting CDC Director Urges Splitting MMR Into Three Separate Shots

Acting CDC Director Jim O'Neill publicly called for the combined measles‑mumps‑rubella (MMR) vaccine to be administered as three separate shots rather than a single combined dose, a proposal raising potential implications for U.S. pediatric vaccine schedules, clinical practice, logistics and public‑health messaging. The statement—reported by CBS News in a video segment—arrived alongside other CDC vaccine activity (the agency’s recent approval of updated COVID‑vaccine guidance) and is likely to prompt debate among public‑health officials, clinicians and vaccine policy advisers about benefits, safety evidence, and operational impacts.