By IDSE News Staff

The Bridge Access Program, which continues free COVID-19 vaccination and treatment coverage for an estimated 15 to 30 million people, is now available, the CDC announced. 

Administered through the CDC, the more than $1 billion program will create a unique public–private partnership to help maintain access to COVID-19 care for people without insurance at their local pharmacies, providers and at their local health centers. Doses will be available in some locations this week, with distribution increasing in the coming weeks.

With the updated and authorized  COVID-19 vaccines now recommended for use, the CDC has taken steps to ensure Americans can receive the vaccines at no cost from their local providers, community health centers or pharmacies.

“We have more tools than ever to protect against serious COVID-19 disease and death, but we must make sure everyone has equitable access to those tools,” said CDC Director Mandy Cohen, MD, MPH. “This CDC program provides free COVID-19 vaccines to uninsured and underinsured adults at pharmacies, health centers and health departments around the country.”

To achieve this, the CDC leveraged an established network of state and local immunization programs to distribute updated COVID-19 vaccines through participating community-based providers, including local health departments and Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)-supported health centers. The CDC has also modified existing Increasing Community Access to

Testing program contracts with CVS, eTrueNorth and Walgreens to offer vaccination services in areas with low vaccination coverage and access. As a result, the CDC has contracted with more than 20,000 retail pharmacy locations nationwide to provide free COVID-19 vaccines to people without insurance, or whose insurance requires a copay for in-network coverage. The CDC also will ship and fund administration of vaccines to public health providers designated by state and local health departments, which could include more than 1,400 HRSA-supported health centers and 12,000 other vaccine providers.

The Bridge Access Program is temporary and scheduled to end in December 2024. A long-term solution would be the Vaccines for Adults program, proposed in both the fiscal year 2023 and 2024 presidential budgets, which would cover all recommended vaccinations at no cost for uninsured adults. This proposal has not yet been enacted into law.

COVID-19 vaccines remain free for most Americans through their health insurance plans, or through the Vaccines for Children program, which provides recommended vaccines and immunizations at no cost to about half of the nation’s children. 

For more information on the Bridge Access Program, visit the CDC’s website.