Rural Health Information Hub Latest News

Public Health Emergency Resource Update Released by CMS

Posted on by lad3

On January 30, 2023, the Biden-Harris Administration announced its intent to end the national emergency and public health emergency (PHE) declarations related to the COVID-19 pandemic on May 11, 2023. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has resources available to help you prepare for the end of the PHE, some of which have been updated based on recent action by Congress .

On December 29, 2022, H.R. 2716, the Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA) for Fiscal Year 2023 was signed into law. This legislation included an extension of the major telehealth waivers and the Acute Hospital Care at Home (AHCaH) individual waiver that were initiated during the PHE.

We will continue to execute the process of a smooth operational wind down of the flexibilities enabled by the COVID-19 emergency declarations. The following materials reflect recent changes and are currently available on the CMS Emergencies Page:

Updates will continue to be provided as we approach the end of the PHE. We encourage you to regularly visit the CMS Emergencies Page for the most up to date information.

HRSA Announces New $350 Million Initiative to Increase COVID-19 Vaccinations

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HRSA will distribute funding to health centers to support community-based vaccination events and outreach focused on underserved populations

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), announced a new $350 million initiative for HRSA-supported health centers to increase COVID-19 vaccines in their communities, with a specific focus on underserved populations. This funding will support health centers administering updated COVID-19 vaccines through mobile, drive-up, walk-up, or community-based vaccination events, including working with community-based organizations, and other efforts to increase the administration of COVID-19 vaccines.

“Community health centers save lives,” said HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra. “We will continue to reach, vaccinate, and protect our most vulnerable people across the country working together with community health centers and community-based organizations. We have seen COVID infections increase in prior winters, and it does not have to be that way this year. We now have updated COVID-19 vaccines to protect communities against the Omicron strain. Our message is simple: Don’t wait. Get an updated COVID-19 vaccine this fall. It’s safe and effective.”

“As community-based organizations that have built deep relationships with their patients and neighborhoods, health centers are uniquely positioned to increase COVID-19 vaccinations,” said HRSA Administrator Carole Johnson. “These funds will ensure that people who live in underserved communities have access to updated COVID-19 vaccines this winter through community-based vaccination events hosted by health care providers and organizations they trust.”

The Expanding COVID-19 Vaccination initiative will provide resources directly to health centers throughout the country to increase COVID-19 vaccinations this winter by addressing the unique access barriers experienced by the underserved populations that health centers serve. HRSA anticipates these efforts will also increase flu and childhood vaccinations through combined vaccination events. All HRSA-funded health centers, as well as health center look-alikes that received American Rescue Plan funding, will be eligible. These funds build on the previous investments made to HRSA-funded health centers to combat COVID-19 and will help even more Americans have access to updated COVID-19 vaccines. To date, health centers have administered more than 22 million vaccines in underserved communities across the country, of which 70 percent to patients of racial and ethnic minorities.

To facilitate access to COVID-19 vaccination, the initiative will foster new and strengthened coordination, with community-based organizations that provide childcare, early childhood development, housing, food, employment, education, older adult, or behavioral health services. Health centers will be encouraged to support mobile, drive-up, walk-up, or community-based vaccination events; extend operating hours, outreach, and off-site vaccination locations to expand opportunities for COVID-19 vaccination; and support  access to COVID-19 vaccination by expanding transportation, translation, education, and interpretation services.

The nearly 1,400 HRSA-funded community health centers serve as a national source of primary care in underserved communities, providing services through more than 14,000 sites across the country. They are community-based and patient-directed organizations that deliver affordable, accessible, and high-quality medical, dental, and behavioral health services to more than 30 million patients each year, with specific initiatives intended to reach people experiencing homelessness, agricultural workers, and residents of public housing.

In 2021, HRSA-funded health centers provided care for one-in-five residents in rural areas and one-in-eleven people nationwide. One-in-three health center patients are living in poverty, and nearly two-thirds are racial/ethnic minorities.

Learn more about the Health Center Program: https://bphc.hrsa.gov/about-health-centers/health-center-program-impact-growth

Read the White House FACT SHEET: Biden Administration Announces Six-Week Campaign to Get More Americans their Updated COVID-⁠19 Vaccine Before End of the Year.

Rural Pennsylvania: Building Healthier Communities for the People Who Power America

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By Bob Morgan, Pennsylvania State Director USDA Rural Development

As we celebrate National Rural Health Day this year, we are reminded that a strong community is rooted in its people. The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to serving those who live in the rural areas of this country, like the small towns and communities right here in Pennsylvania.

At the United States Department of Agriculture, we are hard at work offering the resources to the rural and agricultural communities that feed and fuel our nation and provide the everyday essentials upon which America depends.

As I’ve traveled across Pennsylvania, I’ve seen firsthand the unique challenges people in rural communities and remote parts of the state have in accessing the health resources they need and deserve.

“More than 130 rural hospitals have closed over the past decade, and over 600 additional rural hospitals — more than 30% of all rural hospitals in the country — are at risk of closing in the near future,” according to a report from the Center for Healthcare Quality and Payment Reform.

It is part of my job to see what we can do as an agency to address problems such as this.

At USDA Rural Development, we are committed to making sure that people, no matter where they live, have access to high-quality and reliable health care services like urgent care, primary care, and dental care. That’s why I’ve been a proud champion of programs like the Emergency Rural Health Care Grants, created by President Biden’s historic legislative package, the American Rescue Plan Act.

In the past year, this program has helped rural health care organizations across the commonwealth purchase supplies, deliver food assistance, renovate health care facilities, and provide people with reliable medical testing and treatment.

These funds are helping save lives every day. For example, in April of this year, USDA awarded 18 Pennsylvania healthcare organizations a total of $10.5 million through our Emergency Rural Health Care Grant program. In Pittston, Pa., the ambulance service association received $226,000 of these funds for necessary lifesaving equipment such as heart monitors, automatic CPR machines, and loading devices for the ambulances.

On a larger scale, on Nov. 21, 2021, USDA partnered with St. Luke’s Health Network to open the first hospital in Carbon County in 65 years. The trauma-4 facility treated 17,324 emergency care patients thus far this year, thanks to a $98.5 million Community Facilities direct USDA loan investment for the project and a $16 million guaranteed loan.

Local healthcare officials said they are confident the three-story, 80-patient-room, 160,000-square-foot facility, has redefined health care access, convenience, and quality in northeastern Pennsylvania. Again, we are committed to saving lives and improving quality of life in our local rural communities.

We also know that increasing access to telemedicine and distance learning in rural Pennsylvania is critical to building healthier and more resilient communities.

People in remote parts of the state often need to travel greater distances to see a health care provider, are less likely to have access to high-speed internet to utilize telehealth services and are more likely to live in an area that has a shortage of doctors, dentists, and mental health providers.

Through programs like the Distance Learning and Telemedicine Grants Program, we are making it easier for people living in rural areas to access health care services remotely. In 2022, Rural Development funded three DLT projects in Pennsylvania that impacted more than 80,000 people in central and western Pennsylvania. Our funding share for the three projects totaled more than $1 million.

Health is about much more than medical care. Access to modern, reliable water and wastewater infrastructure is a critical necessity for the health and well-being of every American.

In Pennsylvania, we continue to work hand-in-hand with our partners and local community leaders to promote a healthy community and environment through our Water and Environmental Programs.

These programs help rural communities obtain the technical assistance and capital financing necessary to develop clean and reliable drinking water and waste disposal systems. Safe drinking water and sanitary waste disposal systems are vital not only to public health, but also to the economic vitality of rural America.

Through these programs, we make sure people, children and families across the state have clean water and safe sewer systems that prevent pollution and runoff.

For example, in March the South Wayne Water and Sewer Authority received a Water and Waste Disposal Loan and Grant of $14,879,000 to upgrade their wastewater treatment plant for their public sewer system. The plant currently serves residential communities located in Salem and Lake Townships, Pa. The plant is more than 40 years old, and the components have reached the end of their useful life.

USDA Rural Development is a partner who invests in keeping rural people healthy. Join us this National Rural Health Day, Thursday, Nov. 17 as we celebrate the power of rural.  You can learn more about our programs by visiting our website or by calling 717-237-2153.

COVID-19 Updated Booster Vaccines Covered Without Cost-Sharing for Eligible Children Ages 5 to 11

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Following the actions of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is announcing that Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) coverage is available for eligible covered children for the updated COVID-19 vaccines. As a reminder, regardless of what coverage you have, or whether you have coverage at all, COVID-19 vaccines are free to anyone who wants one, for both children and adults. This coverage is part of the ongoing commitment to protect children against severe COVID-19 illness.

The CDC recently expanded the use of updated (bivalent) COVID-19 vaccines to children ages 5 through 11 years. This followed the FDA’s authorization of updated COVID-19 vaccines from Pfizer-BioNTech for children ages 5 through 11 years and from Moderna for children and adolescents ages 6 through 17 years.  People with Medicare, Medicaid, Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) coverage, private insurance coverage, or no health coverage can get COVID-19 vaccines, including the updated Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccines, at no cost, for as long as the federal government continues purchasing and distributing these COVID-19 vaccines.

Staying up to date with your COVID-19 vaccinations is the best defense against severe illness, hospitalization, and death from the virus. CMS continues to explore ways to ensure maximum access to COVID-19 vaccinations.

Information regarding the CDC COVID-19 Vaccination Program Provider Requirements and how the COVID-19 vaccines are provided through that program at no cost to recipients is available at https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/covid-19/vaccination-provider-support.html and through the COVID-19 Vaccine Policies & Guidance page. For information on Medicare payment, billing and codes for the updated vaccine, visit the CMS COVID-19 Provider Toolkit.

Visit vaccines.gov (English) or vacunas.gov (Spanish) to search for vaccine locations. For resources to promote COVID-19 vaccination, visit the We Can Do This campaign.

HHS Renews COVID-19 PHE for 11th Time — Here’s Why

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From Beckers Healthcare

When President Joe Biden declared the COVID-19 pandemic “over” Sept. 18, his message divided the medical community and sent a clear message: the nation is moving on from COVID-19.

On Oct. 13, HHS extended the public health emergency once again and sent another clear message: the healthcare system is not ready to move on.

“It’s not that we necessarily want to continue the PHE for a long period of time,” Nancy Foster, AHA’s vice president of quality and patient safety, told Becker’s. “We want to make sure that all of the work that needs to get done, does get done, before it ends.”

“There’s 400 people dying every day, and most of those are in hospitals,” Chip Kahn, president and CEO at the Federation of American Hospitals, told Becker’s. “I don’t think we’re really into a new normal where we can say with confidence that this is still not an exceptional situation.”

HHS last renewed the PHE July 15 for an additional 90 days — it also told states it would provide a notice 60 days before if it did decide to end it. Aug. 14, the date in which states would have 60 days’ notice, came without a peep from the federal agency, all but confirming the declaration would be extended once more.

The 11th renewal of the PHE since its first declaration in January 2020 allows the country to continue operating under pandemic-era policies until at least the next deadline: Jan. 11, 2023.

But continuing to label the current situation as an emergency while also declaring that emergency over is increasingly being questioned.

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker was asked in a political debate Oct. 6 why his state has now issued the same PHE 34 times since March 2020. Ten states still have their emergencies in effect.

“We’re following the federal disaster declaration,” Mr. Pritzker said. “It allows us to bring in Medicaid funds and support people who have COVID-19 and support our hospitals.”

Sen. Richard Burr of North Carolina, the top ranking Republican on the Senate health committee, asked in a Sept. 19 letter to the president when Medicaid redeterminations would begin again, or when federal employees and contractors would no longer need to get vaccinated.

“Without a clear plan to wind down pandemic-era policies, the deficit will continue to balloon and the effectiveness of public health measures will wane as the American people continue to be confused by mixed messages and distrust of federal officials,” he wrote.

The number of Americans who say they’re concerned about COVID-19 is 57 percent — among the lowest seen throughout the pandemic, according to a Sept. 14 Ipsos poll. In addition, 82 percent believe the country is in a better pandemic position now than it was one year ago.

“I think it’s the policymakers that are making the judgment because they’re not happy with the implications of the PHE in terms of spending,” Mr. Kahn said. “Also it’s symbolic. If the president said we moved on and there’s still a PHE, then that may put pressure symbolically on the White House to say by Nov. 15 that we’re going to have to move on.”

Moving on isn’t so simple. The pandemic-era policies led to a complete overhaul of telehealth and who can use it, they fast-tracked approvals of COVID-19 vaccines and treatments, and they preserved healthcare coverage for millions of Medicaid beneficiaries nationwide.

Preserving telehealth

“Despite staffing shortages and financial pressures and all the other things we could also talk about, what has not yet happened is fully thinking through how to unwind some of the flexibilities we currently have, and how to perhaps make permanent some of the others,” Ms. Foster said.

The AHA is in favor of cementing many of the PHE policies through legislation, including several around telehealth, rural care and hospital at home programs.

In April 2020, HHS relaxed telehealth restrictions and told providers it would not enforce HIPAA rules around audio-only telehealth services, meaning video calls could be used to treat patients.

In June, the agency released new guidance explaining how providers can maintain HIPAA compliance with telehealth post-PHE because the nonenforcement policy will only remain in effect while the PHE is in place.

Lawmakers are also looking to extend virtual opioid use disorder treatments for individuals with high-deductible health plans. The current rule allowing payers to offer virtual care to members before they meet their deductibles is set to expire at the end of this year.

In addition, waivers that allow patients to be virtually-prescribed buprenorphine for opioid use disorder will also expire when the PHE does.

For Medicare, preserving telehealth flexibilities is also still a work in progress. Medicare has covered the cost of telehealth visits and allowed all Medicare-enrolled providers to bill for telehealth services since early 2020.

As of now, the Medicare flexibilities will end 151 days after the PHE expires. In July, the House passed The Advancing Telehealth Beyond COVID-19 Act, but the legislation must still be approved by the Senate for Medicare patients to continue using telehealth through 2024.

“It’s a complex network of flexibilities that have been allowed,” Ms. Foster said. “It is hard to imagine continuing the robust delivery of telehealth and the way we want to do it and the way our patients seem to want if we don’t have all of the policies we’re identifying because they do build on each other.”

Medicaid redeterminations

Medicaid enrollment initially swelled as a result of early pandemic joblessness and a continuous coverage requirement of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, meaning states had to keep people enrolled in Medicaid for as long as there was a pandemic. Since February 2020, total Medicaid/Children’s Health Insurance Program enrollment has increased by 17.7 million people, or nearly 25 percent.

If the public health emergency expires, a redetermination process will begin a major disenrollment of Medicaid beneficiaries. Once that occurs, HHS estimates up to 15 million people could lose Medicaid coverage, with about half of those being children.

“Comprehensive health insurance coverage is critical for access to care and it would be really disruptive for people and prevent them from seeking care,” Molly Smith, AHA’s group vice president of policy, told Becker’s. 

Ms. Smith says there will be major challenges if a Medicaid redetermination period is triggered – a process that is complicated in normal circumstances. States are suffering from workforce pressures too and it will be difficult for them to process millions of individuals concurrently, many of whom have moved in the last few years.

In addition, the AHA says the Biden administration and CMS have taken steps to support states with more time and information before the PHE eventually ends.

“There are policy things that can be done, and we think the administration has done many of them,” Ms. Smith said. “I know what they are trying to do is really make sure that all of the different stakeholders are aligned and speaking from the same talking points.”

All payers operating Medicaid plans will be affected, but those with higher enrollments are expected to be more impacted. The loss of beneficiaries will be mitigated through the Inflation Reduction Act’s extension of ACA premium tax credits through the end of 2025, which will allow some to regain coverage in the individual market.

Commercialization of COVID-19 vaccines and treatments

Until this fall, the federal government purchased and made available COVID-19 vaccines and treatments at no cost, but the process has begun to shift those costs to the commercial market.

“My hope is that in 2023, you’re going to see the commercialization of almost all of these products. Some of that is actually going to begin this fall, in the days and weeks ahead. You’re going to see commercialization of some of these things,” White House COVID-19 Response Coordinator Ashish Jha, MD, said Aug. 16.

The onus will fall on payers to become more involved in pricing negotiations, likely leading to higher premiums for members. Commercialization would also leave the over 26 million uninsured individuals in the U.S. with a major disadvantage in accessing free vaccines and treatments.

Some of these products only went to market after fast-track approval from the Food and Drug Administration’s emergency use authorizations, including vaccines. According to Bloomberg Law, that doesn’t mean the products disappear once the PHE does.

EUAs must be initially justified by a PHE, but the former is not reliant on the latter to exist. If HHS does terminate an EUA, it must provide an advanced public notice and begin a transition period “for proper dispositioning of the product.”

Physicians: This is still an emergency

It isn’t just the public and politicians looking to move on from COVID.

Starting Oct. 20, the CDC will no longer publish daily updates on total cases and deaths, instead opting to share the data every Wednesday. The agency has also dropped its quarantine protocols for everyone and masking requirements for healthcare facilities not located in a high-transmission community — much to the dismay of some physicians.

“That means that places with substantial transmission can unmask sick patients who haven’t been tested for COVID, right next to the elderly, chemo patients, people with pulmonary disorders, and pregnant women? My kid could identify the flaws with this plan,” said Megan Ranney, MD, emergency physician and academic dean of Brown University School of Public Health in Providence, R.I.

After the president declared the pandemic over, physicians across the country took to social media to express their disagreement.

“Heck no. With all due respect, [President Biden] — you’re wrong. Pandemic is not over. Almost 3,000 Americans are dying from #COVID19 every single week,” Eric Feigl-Ding, PhD, an epidemiologist and former faculty member at Boston-based Harvard Medical School, tweeted. “A weekly 9/11 is a very big deal. Don’t even get me started on #LongCOVID — wreaking havoc on millions more.”

Still, COVID-19 numbers have continued their downward trend. The nation’s seven-day case average was 40,631 as of Oct. 9, a 25 percent decrease in the last two weeks. The CDC forecasts new hospital admissions will remain stable or have an uncertain trend over the next month, and deaths are expected to fall.

“We don’t know what’s going to happen in the next few months,” Mr. Kahn said. “And if we look at Europe and the U.K., we see COVID on the rise. It is still a present issue.”

Pennsylvania Assessing Current PPE Stockpile for Future COVID-19 and PHE Purposes

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The Department of Health (DOH), Department of General Services (DGS), and Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency (PEMA) are collaborating to right-size the current PPE stockpile for future COVID-19 and public health emergency purposes, and to ensure partners have sufficient quantities of PPE to protect against a likely fall/winter resurgence of COVID-19.

To that end, partners are encouraged to request PPE through this form. These resources are intended to support organizations for current or future COVID-19 protection, or other associated purposes (including training purposes) and are available at no cost to the recipient. These resources are NOT permitted to be used to offset normal operational costs for the procurement of PPE.

Please note that while you will be able to indicate requested quantities and size preferences, we will not be able to accommodate requests for specific brands/styles of products in the following categories:

  • N95 masks
  • Surgical masks
  • Isolation gowns
  • Face shields
  • Nitrile gloves
  • Hand sanitizer
  • Sanitizing wipes

Depending on how quickly you intend to use these resources, you may request to be sent “long dated” materials (expiration dates >6 months), “short dated” materials (expiration >1 month but <6 months), or recently expired materials if they are to be used for non-healthcare and/or training purposes that do not involve human contact. Organizations receiving recently expired materials must complete the attached waiver and submit to HOC_log@pa.gov prior to receipt of PPE. We encourage facilities to request the shortest timeline product that can be used by your site.

This survey will be kept open and orders will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis through at least October 2022. Please email HOC_Log@pa.gov if you have any questions about this program. Thank you.

CMS Publishes “End of the PHE” Factsheets

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The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released their Roadmap to the End of the PHE to give guidance to prepare Health Systems for operations after the public health emergency ends. Currently, the PHE is extended until October 15, 2022, but HHS Secretary Becerra has committed to providing a 60-day notice prior to ending the PHE.

The following are fact sheets for each provider type and will provide guidance on the COVID waivers CMS is planning to terminate, keep or modify after the PHE ends and can be accessed directly from the links that are provided or by clicking here.

Unless additional legislation is passed, there are many important CMS waivers that will terminate at the end of the PHE to include:

  • Critical Access Hospital Bed Count and Length of Stay (see page 10 of hospital/CAH fact sheet)
  • Hospital Originating Site Facility Fee for Professional Services Furnished Via Telehealth (see page 4 of Hospital/CAH fact sheet)
  • Expanded Ability for Hospitals to Offer Long-term Care Services (Swing Beds) for Patients Who do not Require Acute Care but do Meet the Skilled Nursing Facility (SNF) Level of Care (see page 9 of Hospital/CAH fact sheet)
  • Hospitals Classified as Sole Community Hospitals (SCHs) (see page 11 of hospital/CAH fact sheet)
  • Hospitals Classified as Medicare-Dependent, Small Rural Hospitals (MDHs) (see page 11 of hospital/CAH fact sheet)
  • Other Key Telemedicine Waivers (see page 13 of hospital/CAH factsheet)
  • Limit Discharge Planning for Hospital and CAHs (see page 17 of hospital/CAH factsheet)​
  • Physician services (see page 24-25 of hospital/CAH fact sheet)

CMS COVID-19 Waivers and Flexibilities for Providers

See below for additional information that CMS distributed:

House Members Ask HHS to Clarify Enforcement Plans for 96-Hour Rule

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A bipartisan group of 25 House members asked Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra to clarify by September 9 whether and how the Administration plans to enforce Medicare’s 96-hour payment rule and condition of participation for critical access hospitals after the COVID-19 public health emergency.

The rule requires CAHs to certify inpatients will be discharged or transferred to another hospital within 96 hours of admission to receive payment. A related Medicare condition of participation requires CAH inpatient stays to remain below 96 hours on an annual average basis. HHS has not prioritized enforcement of the rule since 2018 due to its financial burden on hospitals and waived the condition of participation in response to the COVID-19 public health emergency.

“Even after the PHE formally ends, COVID and other respiratory diseases are likely to cause some patients to need hospitalizations lasting longer than 96 hours,” the representatives wrote. “These and other patients who can safely and effectively be treated in their local hospital deserve the option of receiving care closer to their homes, families, and usual doctors.”

Pennsylvania Medicaid Program: Vaccines for Kids Older Than Six Months Now Available

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COVID-19 vaccines are now available for children 6 months through 5 years of age. As a result of the recommendation from the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) as well as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), nearly 20 million additional children are now eligible nationally for vaccination. 

The pediatric COVID-19 vaccine is safe, and it is highly effective at protecting children against COVID-19-related illness, hospitalization, and death. Vaccinating children against COVID-19 is the best way to help keep families and communities healthy and schools safer this fall.

All children, including children who have already had COVID-19, should get vaccinated.

Distribution of pediatric vaccinations for these younger children has started across the country, and will be available at thousands of pediatric practices, pharmacies, Federally Qualified Health Centers, local health departments, clinics, and other locations. Children in this younger age group can be vaccinated with whichever vaccine is available (either Moderna or Pfizer-BioNTech). Parents can reach out to their doctor, nurse, local pharmacy, or local health department, or visit vaccines.gov to see where vaccines for children are available.

Learn more about COVID-19 vaccines for children:

Finding a Vaccine is Easy!

Many vaccine providers now take walk-ins and offer same-day appointments. You can find a vaccine provider near you:

  • Online – go to Vaccine Finder and search by zip code.
  • Text – send your zip code to GETVAX (438829) for English, or VACUNA (822862) for Spanish and receive three possible vaccination sites in your area, with phone numbers to call for an appointment.

Phone – if you need help or do not have internet access, call the PA Department of Health Hotline at 1-877-724-3258.

About the Pediatric Vaccine

Vaccine Dosage

The dosage for the pediatric COVID-19 is based on the child’s age on the day of vaccination, not the child’s size or weight. Children get a smaller dose of COVID-19 vaccine than teens and adults that is the right amount for their age group. COVID-19 primary series vaccination for children and teens. As of June 18, 2022:

​Child’s Age

​Pfizer-BioNTech

​Moderna

​J&J/Janssen
​6 months–4 years old ​3 dose primary series ​2 dose primary series ​Not authorized
​5 years old ​2 dose primary series ​2 dose primary series ​Not authorized
​6–17 years old ​2 dose primary series ​2 dose primary series ​Not authorized

More than 596 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine had been given in the United States since December 2020.

  • View the CDC COVID Data Tracker — See current total COVID-19 vaccinations administered in the United States.
  • Enroll in V-Safe — V-safe provides personalized and confidential health check-ins via text messages and web surveys so you can quickly and easily share with CDC how you, or your dependent, feel after getting a COVID-19 vaccine.

COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective. COVID-19 vaccines were evaluated in tens of thousands of participants in clinical trials. The vaccines met the FDA’s rigorous scientific standards for safety, effectiveness, and manufacturing quality needed to support authorization.

The Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson/Janssen COVID-19 vaccines will continue to undergo the most intensive safety monitoring in U.S. history. This monitoring includes using both established and new safety monitoring systems to make sure that COVID-19 vaccines are safe.

Spread Vaccine Awareness!

The Pennsylvania Department of Health has created a number of resources to help you share accurate vaccine information with children and families regarding the COVID-19 vaccines.

Additional COVID-19 Vaccine Resources

CMS Launches COVID-19 Toolkit for Pediatricians and Family Physicians

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This toolkit has resources for pediatricians and family physicians who want to help increase confidence in and uptake of COVID-19 vaccines among their patients and in the communities they serve. Developed in partnership with the American Academy of Pediatrics, it includes information from CDC and new, culturally tailored materials from the HHS COVID-19 Public Education Campaign and its team of multicultural experts.

See https://wecandothis.hhs.gov/resource/pediatricians-and-family-physicians-toolkit for resources.