Children are eligible before their 19th birthday if any one of the following applies:

• Medicaid-eligible or enrolled
• Uninsured (no medical insurance coverage)
• Underinsured (your insurance doesn't cover any or all recommended vaccines, or all costs)
• American Indian or Alaskan Native

More people are now eligible for NC Medicaid.

The VFC program covers vaccines recommended by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This includes all vaccines required in NC for child care and school.

• CDC Recommended Vaccines by Age
• Vaccine Schedules for You and Your Family

Ask your health care provider if they are a VFC provider. Many North Carolina providers are part of the program.

Don't have a VFC provider? There are many ways to find a place to get free vaccines near you:

• Contact your local health department
• Find a federally qualified health center
• Reach out to a rural health center
• Search vaccines.gov for locations that may provide free vaccines

Find vaccines for seasonal respiratory illnesses (flu, COVID-19, RSV)

All vaccines are free through the VFC program, saving you at least $100 or more on some vaccines.

Your provider may charge a fee:

• To administer the vaccines. But if you can't pay, VFC providers can't deny eligible children the vaccines.
• For the office visit. But you can schedule an immunization-only visit. Providers must allow immunization-only visits for patients.

The North Carolina Immunization Program (NCIP) administers the state's Vaccines for Children program. NCIP gets funding from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Each year, the Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA) transfers funds to CDC.

About 90% of the funds NCIP gets goes toward purchasing childhood vaccines. Remaining funds go toward operational costs. This includes provider enrollment, program evaluation and vaccine accountability activities.

Learn more about the federal VFC program.