COVID-19 Vaccines Are Free
What You Need to Know
COVID-19 vaccines are available for everyone ages 5 years and older at no cost.
Vaccines were paid for with taxpayer dollars and will be given free of charge to all people living in the United States, regardless of insurance or immigration status.
COVID-19 vaccination is an important tool to help stop the pandemic.
CDC recommends you get a COVID-19 vaccine as soon as you can.
Be Aware of Scams
If anyone asks you to pay for access to a COVID-19 vaccine, you can bet it’s a scam. Don’t share your personal or financial information if someone calls, texts, or emails you promising access to a vaccine for an extra fee.
COVID-19 vaccination providers cannot:
Charge you for a vaccine
Charge you directly for any administration fees, copays, or coinsurance
Deny vaccination to anyone who does not have health insurance coverage, is underinsured, or is out of network
Charge an office visit or other fee to the recipient if the only service provided is a COVID-19 vaccination
Require additional services in order for a person to receive a COVID-19 vaccine; however, additional healthcare services can be provided at the same time and billed as appropriate
COVID-19 vaccination providers can:
Seek appropriate reimbursement from the recipient’s plan or program (e.g., private health insurance, Medicare, Medicaid) for a vaccine administration fee
However, providers cannot charge the vaccine recipient the balance of the bill.
Seek appropriate reimbursement for uninsured vaccine recipients from the Health Resources and Services Administration’s COVID-19 Uninsured Program.
Anyone in the United States Can Get Vaccinated
The federal government is providing vaccines free of charge to everyone 5 years and older living in the United States, regardless of their immigration or health insurance status.
Ensuring that everyone ages 5 years and older in the United States can receive a COVID-19 vaccine helps us get closer to the goal of achieving population immunity. Population immunity makes it harder for COVID-19 to spread from person to person, and it even helps protect people who cannot receive a vaccine, like newborns.
CDC does not require U.S. citizenship for individuals to receive a COVID-19 vaccine. Jurisdictions (state, tribal, local, and territorial) cannot add U.S. citizenship requirements or require U.S. citizenship verification as a requirement for vaccination.