"As far as sticker price goes, the recommended vaccines for kids in the United States do not come cheap. The hepatitis-B shot, given within the first hours of life, can be purchased for about $30. The rotavirus vaccine costs $102 to $147 a dose. A full course of the vaccine that protects against pneumonia and meningitis runs about $1,000."
"Virtually all children receive these shots for free. The federal government legally requires most insurance to cover the roughly 30 different shots for kids, without a co-pay. Kids who are on Medicaid or who don't have insurance coverage can get free shots as well, thanks to a CDC program known as Vaccines for Children. Among public-health experts, VFC, as it's commonly known, is widely seen as an unmitigated success."
Recommended childhood vaccines in the United States carry high retail costs, with individual doses ranging from about $30 to more than $1,000 for a full course. Most children receive vaccines at no out-of-pocket cost because insurers must cover roughly 30 pediatric shots without a co-pay and because the Vaccines for Children (VFC) program provides free vaccines to eligible children, covering roughly half of American kids. VFC's establishment in 1994 correlated with declines in disease and simpler vaccination for families. Recent changes to the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) membership preceded contentious meetings and votes to remove the MMRV combination vaccine from the schedule and from VFC citing safety concerns, signaling potential shifts in access and policy fragmentation.
Read at The Atlantic
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