§ 441.615 Administration fee requirements.

(a) Under the VFC Program, a provider who administers a qualified pediatric vaccine to a federally vaccine-eligible child, may not impose a charge for the cost of the vaccine. (1) A provider can impose a fee for the administration of a qualified pediatric vaccine as long as the fee does not exceed the costs of the administration (as determined by the Secretary based on actual regional costs for the administration). (2) A provider may not deny administration of a qualified pediatric vaccine to a vaccine-eligible child due to the inability of the child's parents or legal guardian to pay the administration fee. (b) The Secretary must publish each State's regional maximum charge for the VFC program, which represents the maximum amount that a provider in a state could charge for the administration of qualified pediatric vaccines to federally vaccine-eligible children under the VFC program. (c) An interim formula has been established for the calculation of a state's regional maximum administration fee. That formula is as follows: National charge data × updated geographic adjustment factors (GAFs) = maximum VFC fee. (d) The State Medicaid Agency must submit a state plan amendment that identifies the amount that the state will pay providers for the administration of a qualified pediatric vaccine to a Medicaid-eligible child under the VFC program. The amount identified by the state cannot exceed the state's regional maximum administration fee. (e) Physicians participating in the VFC program can charge federally vaccine-eligible children who are not enrolled in Medicaid the maximum administration fee (if that fee reflects the provider's cost of administration) regardless of whether the state has established a lower administration fee under the Medicaid program. However, there would be no federal Medicaid matching funds available for the administration since these children are not eligible for Medicaid.