The Health and Human Services Department began a campaign on Friday to support childhood vaccinations that federal health officials said was intended to “cut through the noise of misinformation.”

The announcement, which came as House Republicans were racing to avert a government shutdown at midnight, did not mention Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President-elect Donald J. Trump’s choice for health secretary, a longtime vaccine skeptic. But its timing, while Mr. Kennedy has been meeting with Republican lawmakers to make the case for his selection, was striking.

The campaign, called Let’s Get Real, includes stories from physicians on the importance of the shots, and infographics and videos meant to be used by health providers and parents.

“We need to stop this dangerous trend and be more vocal about protecting our children,” Kaye Hayes, a federal infectious disease official, said in a statement announcing the campaign. “Parents have heard so much misinformation. Many of them are overwhelmed.”

Mr. Kennedy has said he does not want to take away access to any vaccines, but wants greater transparency in how they’re regulated.

In the announcement Friday, health officials cited Centers for Disease Control and Prevention research that showed that 3.3 percent of kindergartners had an exemption from at least one vaccine during the 2023-24 school year, the highest level the agency has ever reported.

Federal officials warned of the potential for measles outbreaks if parents avoided vaccination, and pointed to the success of the polio vaccine. The New York Times reported last week that a lawyer who worked with Mr. Kennedy to vet potential federal health appointees had petitioned the federal government to revoke its approval of the stand-alone polio vaccine in 2022 on behalf of a client.

Calls for school crackdowns have mounted with reports of cyberbullying among adolescents and studies indicating that smartphones, which offer round-the-clock distraction and social media access, have hindered academic instruction and the mental health of children.

Mr. Kennedy met on Capitol Hill this week with mostly sympathetic lawmakers. But he could soon encounter more resistance from Republicans, including Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, a polio survivor, and Democrats wary of his record of anti-vaccine activism. Mr. Kennedy has cast doubt on the polio vaccine.

Dr. Rachel Levine, the assistant secretary for health and human services, said in the Friday announcement that the success of childhood vaccinations in preventing diseases like polio and Hib “means that many parents have never seen some of the diseases that vaccines prevent.”

She added: “We need to make sure conversations about vaccines are balanced and factual to ensure our children get the best protection as they grow up.”jilipark