Hepatitis B at birth
Hepatitis B is a virus that infects the liver and can pass from a mother to her baby at birth. A vaccine is routinely offered in the first day of life, and the first dose is part of the usual infant series. The decision is whether to give it at birth, later or not at all, and official US guidance on the timing has recently changed.
Should our baby get the hepatitis B vaccine at birth?
In short: Parents choose between 4 main approaches: Within 24 hours (AAP, and the federal schedule now in force); Wait until 2 months if the mother tests negative (the December 2025 CDC change, currently stayed); Delay further; Decline. Evidence: guidance changing. Official guidance changed recently and is still moving — check current sources. Best settled: around the birth.
- Evidence
- Guidance changing
- Best settled
- Around the birth
- Part of
- Pregnancy to first birthday
Hepatitis B at birth: what are the options?
Parents usually land on one of these 4 approaches.
1. Within 24 hours (AAP, and the federal schedule now in force)
The baby gets the first hepatitis B vaccine dose in the first day of life.
2. Wait until 2 months if the mother tests negative (the December 2025 CDC change, currently stayed)
If the mother tests negative for hepatitis B, the first dose waits until two months.
3. Delay further
You postpone the vaccine beyond two months.
4. Decline
The baby does not get the hepatitis B vaccine.
Hepatitis B at birth: what does the evidence say?
Guidance changing. Official guidance changed recently and is still moving — check current sources. (In flux)
The court stayed the December 2025 vote on March 16, 2026, so the earlier universal birth-dose recommendation is back in force; the AAP also recommends the birth dose; the government's appeal is set for argument October 6, 2026
Sources
What else is worth knowing?
Hepatitis B is a liver infection that can become lifelong when caught in infancy. The vaccine is given as a series, with the first dose traditionally at birth. US guidance on timing has been in dispute, so ask your pediatrician what they currently recommend.
Questions to ask each other
- Which official guidance are we each most inclined to follow here and why?
- Have we asked our doctor which schedule they follow?
- What would we want to happen in the hospital the day after birth?
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First published 2026-10-03. Last updated 2026-10-05. General information, not medical advice.