Florida VFC Program Provider Agreement

I will annually submit a provider profile representing populations served by my practice/facility. I will submit more frequently if 1) the number of children served changes or 2) the status of the facility changes during the calendar year.

I will screen patients and document eligibility status at each immunization encounter for VFC eligibility (i.e., federally or state vaccine-eligible) and administer VFC-purchased vaccine by such category only to children who are 18 years of age or younger who meet one or more of the following categories:

1. Federally Vaccine-eligible Children (VFC eligible)
   1. Are an American Indian or Alaska Native;
   2. Are enrolled in Medicaid;
   3. Have no health insurance;
   4. Are underinsured: A child who has health insurance, but the coverage does not include vaccines; a child whose insurance covers only selected vaccines (VFC-eligible for non-covered vaccines only). Underinsured children are eligible to receive VFC vaccine only through a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC), or Rural Health Clinic (RHC) or under an approved deputization agreement.
2. State Vaccine-eligible Children
   1. In addition, to the extent that my state designates additional categories of children as “state vaccine-eligible”, I will screen for such eligibility as listed in the addendum to this agreement and will administer state-funded doses (including 317 funded doses) to such children.

Children aged 0 through 18 years that do not meet one or more of the eligibility federal vaccine categories (VFC eligible), are not eligible to receive VFC-purchased vaccine.

For the vaccines identified and agreed upon in the provider profile, I will comply with immunization schedules, dosages, and contraindications that are established by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) and included in the VFC program unless:

1. In the provider's medical judgment, and in accordance with accepted medical practice, the provider deems such compliance to be medically inappropriate for the child;
2. The particular requirements contradict state law, including laws pertaining to religious and other exemptions.

I will maintain all records related to the VFC program for a minimum of three years and upon request make these records available for review. VFC records include, but are not limited to, VFC screening and eligibility documentation, billing records, medical records that verify receipt of vaccine, vaccine ordering records, and vaccine purchase and accountability records.

I will immunize eligible children with publicly supplied vaccine at no charge to the patient for the vaccine.

I will not charge a vaccine administration fee to non-Medicaid federal vaccine eligible children that exceeds the administration fee cap of $24.01 per vaccine dose. For Medicaid children, I will accept the reimbursement for immunization administration set by the state Medicaid agency or the contracted Medicaid health plans.

I will not deny administration of a publicly purchased vaccine to an established patient because the child's parent/guardian/individual of record is unable to pay the administration fee.

I will distribute the current Vaccine Information Statements (VIS) each time a vaccine is administered and maintain records in accordance with the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act (NCVIA), which includes reporting clinically significant adverse events to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS).

I will comply with the requirements for vaccine management including:

1. Ordering vaccine and maintaining appropriate vaccine inventories;
2. Not storing vaccine in dormitory-style units at any time;
3. Storing vaccine under proper storage conditions at all times. Refrigerator and freezer vaccine storage units and temperature monitoring equipment and practices must meet Immunization Section—Vaccines for Children Program storage and handling requirements;
4. Returning all spoiled/expired public vaccines to CDC’s centralized vaccine distributor within six months of spoilage/expiration

I agree to operate within the VFC program in a manner intended to avoid fraud and abuse. Consistent with "fraud" and "abuse" as defined in the Medicaid regulations at 42 CFR § 455.2, and for the purposes of the VFC Program:

Fraud: is an intentional deception or misrepresentation made by a person with the knowledge that the deception could result in some unauthorized benefit to himself or some other person. It includes any act that constitutes fraud under applicable federal or state law.

Abuse: provider practices that are inconsistent with sound fiscal, business, or medical practices and result in an unnecessary cost to the Medicaid program, (and/or including actions that result in an unnecessary cost to the immunization program, a health insurance company, or a patient); or in reimbursement for services that are not medically necessary or that fail to meet professionally recognized standards for health care. It also includes recipient practices that result in unnecessary cost to the Medicaid program.

I will participate in VFC program compliance site visits including unannounced visits, and other educational opportunities associated with VFC program requirements.

For providers with a signed deputization Memorandum of Understanding between a FQHC or RHC and the Immunization Section—Vaccines for Children Program to serve underinsured VFC-eligible children, I agree to:

1. Include “underinsured” as a VFC eligibility category during the screening for VFC eligibility at every visit;
2. Vaccinate “walk-in” VFC-eligible underinsured children; and
3. Report required usage data

Note: “Walk-in” in this context refers to any underinsured child who presents requesting a vaccine; not just established patients. “Walk-in” does not mean that a provider must serve underinsured patients without an appointment. If a provider’s office policy is for all patients to make an appointment to receive immunizations then the policy would apply to underinsured patients as well.

For pharmacies, urgent care, or school located vaccine clinics, I agree to:

1. Vaccinate all “walk-in” VFC-eligible children and
2. Will not refuse to vaccinate VFC-eligible children based on a parent’s inability to pay the administration fee.

Note: “Walk-in” refers to any VFC eligible child who presents requesting a vaccine; not just established patients. “Walk-in” does not mean that a provider must serve VFC patients without an appointment. If a provider’s office policy is for all patients to make an appointment to receive immunizations then the policy would apply to VFC patients as well.

I agree to replace vaccine purchased with federal funds (VFC, 317) that are deemed non-viable due to provider negligence on a dose-for-dose basis.

I agree that all federally funded vaccines provided to me will be managed within the Florida IIS, Florida State Health Online Tracking System (Florida SHOTS) the statewide immunization registry by:

• Enrolling in the Florida SHOTS in order to place vaccine order requests.
• Submitting all order requests for federally funded (VFC) Vaccine orders based on my ordering tier.
• Maintaining vaccine inventory regularly based on my ordering tier, by documenting vaccine received, doses administered since last order, wasted or returned, transfers, and on-hand counts at the time of the order request.
• Processing any needed return/waste order request(s) to ensure all federally funded (VFC) is accounted for accurately.

I understand this facility or the Immunization Section—Vaccines for Children Program may terminate this agreement at any time. If I choose to terminate this agreement, I will properly return any unused federal vaccine as directed by the Immunization Section—Vaccines for Children Program.