TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Centers for Disease Control on Saturday said it will not follow a US advisory panel’s decision to end the guideline that all newborns receive the hepatitis B vaccine.

On Friday, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices voted to limit its recommendation to babies born to women who test positive for the virus or whose status is unknown, per NPR. Citing differences in prevalence between Taiwan and the US, the CDC said it will maintain Taiwan’s policy of universal hepatitis B vaccination at birth, per CNA.

Taiwan was once known as “hepatitis island,” with mother-to-child transmission accounting for 40–50% of infections. This led to the launch of a nationwide infant hepatitis B vaccination program in July 1986.

CDC data shows that for the 2024 birth cohort, first-dose coverage is 93.1%, second-dose coverage is 98.9%, and third-dose coverage is 97.7%. High coverage has driven the hepatitis B carrier rate among children under 6 from 10.5% before the program to below 0.8%.

The US panel voted 8–3 to recommend “individual-based decision-making” for newborns of mothers who test negative, advising parents and healthcare providers to jointly assess the risks. 

CDC Spokesperson Lin Ming-cheng (林明誠) said the US discussion on Dec. 4–5 featured strong arguments on both sides. Supporters said that low-prevalence countries often use risk-based approaches rather than vaccinating all newborns.