Vaccines for Children Program (VFC)

The Vaccines for Children program (VFC) is designed to allow eligible children zero through 18 years of age to receive free vaccinations.

The VFC program promotes the creation of a medical home for children by inviting private provider participation. It can also reduce referrals to public health clinics and help raise awareness of childhood immunizations.

Eligibility

Eligible children include those who receive Medicaid, Native Americans or Alaskan Natives, and children who have health insurance that does not cover vaccination. These underinsured children can receive immunizations from a Federally Qualified Health Center, Community/Rural Health Center, or Public Health Department. Contact a VFC provider near you to discuss eligibility.

Locating a Provider

The Mississippi State Department of Health provides all necessary immunizations at low cost. Immunizations are free if you qualify for the Vaccines for Children program. To locate a provider near you, see our list of VFC providers.

• List of VFC immunization providers in Mississippi PDF

VFC Providers

Becoming a Provider

Health care providers may receive VFC vaccine and administer this vaccine at no charge if they are willing to enroll in the program and agree to follow the ACIP Recommended Immunization Schedule. There is no fee for enrolling and the provider is allowed to charge a $10 administration fee per vaccine if the parent is able to pay; otherwise the vaccination is provided at no cost. Providers may also elect to bill clients for a separate office visit. For any child who is Medicaid eligible, the provider must bill Medicaid for the administration fee. This fee is reimbursed in ADDITION to the reimbursement for the office visit: it does not replace it.

Currently, approximately 450 private health care providers have enrolled with the Mississippi VFC Program.

Enrollment

To enroll your clinic as a VFC provider for the first time, or to re-enroll after an absence, a readiness assessment is required. Please complete the VFC New Enrollment Assessment Request below, and a VFC immunization Representative will schedule a call to discuss VFC program requirements.

• New Enrollment Assessment Request form

Provider Recertification Schedule

Providers enrolled in the Vaccine for Children program are required to complete an annual recertification, and to undergo a biennial compliance visit.

Annual recertifications will now be scheduled quarterly. Previously, recertification took place simultaneously for all providers. Annual recertification will now take place in the quarter preceding the provider's scheduled biennial compliance visit (regardless of the year in which their compliance visit falls), in an effort to make this process more efficient for all involved.

This new schedule is designed to reduce the amount of time the provider spends gathering documents to maintain VFC requirements, and allow documents to be ready for each compliance visit.

Schedule and contacts

Recertification quarters for specific VFC providers and contact information for the Provider Enrollment Team Member responsible for processing your recertification can be viewed or downloaded below.

• VFC Quarterly Provider Recertification Schedule and Contacts