Hepatitis B at Birth: What Changed in the 2025 Recommendation

Updated September 2026

For decades, the hepatitis B birth dose was a routine part of newborn vaccination in the United States. In December 2025, CDC adopted a new recommendation that changed that approach for babies born to mothers who test negative for hepatitis B.

What has not changed

Babies born to mothers who test positive for hepatitis B—or whose hepatitis B status is unknown—should still receive hepatitis B vaccine within 12 hours of birth. That early protection remains important because infection acquired around birth has a high risk of becoming chronic.

What changed

For infants whose mothers test negative for hepatitis B, CDC now recommends individual shared decision-making between parents and clinicians about whether to give the vaccine at birth or begin the series later in infancy.

If the birth dose is deferred in this group, CDC’s 2025 guidance suggests beginning the series no earlier than 2 months of age.

Why hepatitis B still matters

Hepatitis B infects the liver and can become a lifelong infection. Chronic infection can eventually lead to cirrhosis or liver cancer. The younger someone is when infected, the greater the likelihood that infection will become chronic.

Why this post changed

The original version of this article explained why universal newborn hepatitis B vaccination became standard in 1991. That history is still important, but the current U.S. recommendation is no longer identical to the policy that was in place when this article was first published.

— Nora Phillips, DNP, APRN Central Health | Wahiawa, Hawaiʻi

Source

CDC — Hepatitis B Immunization Fact Sheet, December 16, 2025. https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2025/fact-sheet-hepatitis-b-immunization.html