The Vaccines for Children (VFC) program is a federally-funded program. It supplies vaccine at no cost to public and private health care providers who enroll and agree to immunize eligible children in their medical practice or clinic. The VFC program was created by the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993 and began on October 1, 1994. The VFC program was designed to:
Reduce the cost of vaccines for a physician or medical practice.
Create fewer barriers for parents to immunize their children.
Save parents about $1325 per child in expenses for vaccines.
Keep children in their medical home when they qualify for VFC.
Which children are eligible to get these vaccines through the VFC program?
Any child from birth through 18 years of age is eligible to receive VFC-supplied vaccine if he/she meets at least one of the following criteria:
The child does not have health insurance.
The child is enrolled in Medicaid (including Medicaid HMOs).
The child is an American Indian or Alaskan Native.
The child has health insurance that does not pay for vaccine (applicable only to children attending a Federally Qualified Health Center or Rural Health Clinic).
If a child is not in any of the above categories, the family should contact their local health department for more information.
Why should private health care providers enroll in the VFC program?
There are many financial benefits to enrolling in the VFC program:
Providers can offer parents up to $1325 of free vaccine for each eligible child.
There is little or no need to refer all or most patients to public clinics.
Providers continue to control who they see in their practice. The VFC program does not require that they serve new patients based upon VFC eligibility.
Enrollment and screening have been made as simple as possible.
Free delivery of vaccine to your practice in fewer than 10 days.
Providers can ensure that their patient gets vaccinated on time and increase Health Plan Employer Data and Information Set (HEDIS) levels in their practice.
