The West Virginia Department of Health says it anticipates getting federal funding to purchase updated COVID-19 vaccines for uninsured and underinsured people this fall. (Getty Images)
The state Department of Health says it anticipates getting federal funding to purchase updated COVID-19 vaccines for uninsured and underinsured people this fall after a program that provided them ended late last month.
The federal Bridge Allocation Program, which last year provided the state with 13,766 free doses of COVID-19 vaccine for uninsured people, ended in August.
State Epidemiologist Shannon McBee said this week the state Bureau for Public Health expects to get an increase in its federal vaccine budget to purchase doses for the uninsured in late September or early October. The vaccines will be available as needed at local health departments, McBee said. More details about the vaccines should be available in the coming weeks, she said.
The Centers for Disease Control had previously said that after the end of the Bridge program, it would [“enhance] immunization programs through support to state and local health departments to improve access to COVID-19 vaccines for uninsured and underinsured people to help protect them from the worst effects of the virus.”
Representatives from local West Virginia health departments said they’re waiting on word from the state about support for providing free doses of the vaccine for uninsured people.
The CDC recommends everyone ages 6 months and up get a 2024-2025 COVID-19 vaccine. The vaccines help protect against severe illness, and complications and death from the virus.
“West Virginia continues to experience a moderate level of COVID-19 activity, with COVID-19 test positivity and emergency department visits continuing to remain elevated,” McBee said in an email sent through the department’s communication staff. “Surges like this are known to occur through the year including the summer months.”
She noted that severity of the illness has fallen since the pandemic started, meaning the increase is not causing as many hospitalizations and deaths as in previous years.
According to estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau, 5.9% of West Virginia residents, or approximately 106,000 people, were without health coverage in 2022.
About 17% of West Virginia adults and 29.5% of residents 65 and older received a 2023–24 COVID-19 vaccine dose, the Bureau for Public Health said.
The vaccine is available now at some pharmacies, including CVS and Walgreens. It is covered with no additional costs by most health insurance plans, but those without health insurance may have to pay out of pocket. An adult dose of the vaccine costs $141.80, but can be more with fees. At CVS, for instance, the vaccine costs $202, a spokeswoman said.
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