Vaccines For Children (VFC) Program

The Florida VFC Program provides vaccines to children 0 through 18 years of age who meet program eligibility at no cost to the parent/guardian. The VFC Program purchases the vaccines and supplies them to enrolled VFC Program providers at no cost. It supports the Immunization Section's commitment to vaccinate all children. This valuable program allows providers to make routine immunizations available to eligible children without out-of-pocket expenses to the parent/guardian.

What are the benefits of the VFC Program?

• Reduces vaccine cost as a barrier to vaccinating VFC Program-eligible children at the right time with the right vaccine.
• Provides children with necessary vaccines, regardless of their parents’ financial status.
• Eliminates the need to refer children to public clinics for vaccinations and risk loss of continuity of care.
• Continues or maintains the provider’s  present system of purchasing vaccines for private-paying patients. Participation in the VFC Program does not impact private vaccine purchase.

VFC Results

The Florida VFC Program began in 1994. It distributes over $200 million worth of vaccines annually to private physicians, hospitals, and other public and private health care providers throughout the state. The VFC Program represents an unprecedented approach to improving vaccine availability nationwide by making federally-purchased vaccine available to both public and private immunization providers. The program has succeeded in raising immunization coverage rates among high-risk children and reducing disparities in access to health care. The VFC Program has also helped reduce physician referrals for immunizations to public clinics.

County Immunization Profile

Vaccinations protect you, your family, and your community from vaccine-preventable diseases like varicella (chicken pox), pertussis (whooping cough), and measles. Those who are not vaccinated are at increased risk for developing vaccine-preventable diseases, and outbreaks are known to happen where there are groups of unvaccinated persons. Therefore, to prepare for and prevent outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases, it is important to understand vaccination coverage throughout Florida.

The Florida Department of Health uses a variety of data sources to estimate vaccination coverage in Florida, including Florida’s statewide immunization registry, Florida SHOTS, and annual vaccination surveys conducted by the Immunizations Section. To learn more about vaccination coverage statewide or at the county level, select a region below to view the immunization profile. To learn more about unvaccinated children at the local level, explore an interactive mapping application, available at FLHealth.gov/REmap.

View the entire St. Johns County Community Immunization Coverage Report (PDF, 362KB).