It’s September 2026. Routine childhood vaccines are now optional in the United States, and government officials, after hastily compiling an immense research registry of autistic people, have added the neurodevelopmental condition to the list of compensable vaccine injuries, thereby opening up vaccine makers to an onslaught of lawsuits. Facing decreased demand and increased litigation, some vaccine makers have pulled their shots from the domestic market entirely. Outbreaks are spreading across