# 119-hr-8425: Strengthening the Vaccines for Children Program Act of 2026 119-hr-8425, Strengthening the Vaccines for Children Program Act of 2026, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Rep. Schrier, Kim [D-WA-8] (D-WA); status introduced; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-10-03). - Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-8425 - As of: 2026-10-03 - Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts. ## Facts - Bill: 119-hr-8425 - Congress: 119 - Title: Strengthening the Vaccines for Children Program Act of 2026 - Status: introduced - Introduced: 2026-04-21 - Sponsor: Rep. Schrier, Kim [D-WA-8] (D-WA) - Cosponsors: 13 - Policy area: Health - Touches household money: yes - Last recorded action: 2026-10-03 ## Summary **Expands vaccine access for low-income and CHIP-enrolled children.** This bill would broaden who qualifies for federally supported pediatric vaccines, raise reimbursement for vaccine administration and counseling, and improve data sharing and reporting for tribal and state programs. - Families and children: It would add children enrolled in the State Child Health Insurance Program (CHIP) and children who receive a qualified pediatric vaccine but lack coverage for that vaccine to the pool of federally vaccine-eligible kids. It would also require vaccine administration and counseling be paid at not less than 100 percent of the Medicare Part B rate through December 31, 2028. - Providers: Medicaid and CHIP providers would get clearer authority to charge administration and counseling fees, including separate charges for components of multi-component vaccines, and could be reimbursed for counseling in addition to administration. The 100 percent Part B-rate floor would apply to managed care contracts on the same basis as fee-for-service. - States and tribal public health: States would be eligible for a 1 percentage point FMAP increase starting January 1, 2027 if they run culturally competent vaccination outreach covering vaccine benefits, safety, and risks of non-vaccination. The CDC would develop data-sharing access for tribal epidemiology centers and publish disaggregated vaccination data for fiscal years 2027 and 2028. The Comptroller General must report within two years on effects on vaccination rates and provider participation. ## Cosponsors (13) - Rep. Dexter, Maxine [D-OR-3] (D-OR), 2026-10-01T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Min, Dave [D-CA-47] (D-CA), 2026-10-01T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Joyce, John [R-PA-13] (R-PA), 2026-04-21T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. DelBene, Suzan K. [D-WA-1] (D-WA), 2026-04-22T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Riley, Josh [D-NY-19] (D-NY), 2026-04-22T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Morelle, Joseph D. [D-NY-25] (D-NY), 2026-04-22T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Quigley, Mike [D-IL-5] (D-IL), 2026-04-22T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Johnson, Henry C. "Hank" [D-GA-4] (D-GA), 2026-04-22T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Meng, Grace [D-NY-6] (D-NY), 2026-04-22T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Wilson, Joe [R-SC-2] (R-SC), 2026-06-03T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Fitzpatrick, Brian K. [R-PA-1] (R-PA), 2026-07-14T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Williams, Nikema [D-GA-5] (D-GA), 2026-08-31T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Deluzio, Christopher R. [D-PA-17] (D-PA), 2026-08-31T00:00:00.000Z ## Provisions PRIA read - More vaccine access for children: benefit, medium. This bill would expand who counts as a federally vaccine-eligible child. If enacted, a child who is not insured for a particular pediatric vaccine would be eligible for that federally supplied vaccine. The bill would also say that children enrolled in CHIP (Title XXI) are explicitly covered. These… - Higher Medicaid vaccine payments: benefit, medium. This bill would require Medicaid and CHIP programs to pay at least 100 percent of the Medicare Part B rate for vaccine administration and counseling. The rule would apply to services given from enactment through December 31, 2028. It would also apply to state pediatric vaccine programs and to payme… - Small FMAP boost for states: benefit, medium. Beginning with the quarter on or after January 1, 2027, this bill would add 1 percentage point to a State's FMAP for each quarter if the State carries out specified culturally competent vaccination outreach to children. The outreach must cover research advances, population benefits, outbreak risks,… - CDC would publish child vaccine rates: benefit, low. For fiscal years 2027 and 2028, this bill would require the CDC to publish vaccination rates for each State pediatric vaccine distribution program. The data would be posted on the CDC website and broken down by region, age, sex, race, ethnicity, and other groups the CDC chooses. The CDC would coord… - Tribal access to health data: benefit, low. This bill would authorize the CDC Director to create a data-sharing strategy so tribal epidemiology centers can access child and adolescent health data they need for public health work. Access would be limited to what is necessary for those centers to carry out their public health responsibilities.… - New vaccine fees and limits: mixed, low. This bill would let providers charge fees for vaccine administration and for counseling about vaccines for federally vaccine-eligible children. The fee for a first component of a multi-part vaccine could not be more than the Secretary's estimate of regional costs. For later components, providers co… ## Related bills - 119-hr-9877: Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2026 - 119-hr-4206: CONNECT for Health Act of 2025 - 119-hr-1065: Protect Our Letter Carriers Act of 2025 - 119-hr-909: Crime Victims Fund Stabilization Act of 2025 - 119-hr-7973: Momnibus Act - 119-hres-1641: Honoring the contributions of Indian Americans and supporting the designation of July as "Indian American Heritage Month". ## Sources - [119-hr-8425 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/8425) ## Related - [119-hr-9877: Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-9877) - [119-hr-4206: CONNECT for Health Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-4206) - [119-hr-1065: Protect Our Letter Carriers Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-1065) - [119-hr-909: Crime Victims Fund Stabilization Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-909) - [119-hr-7973: Momnibus Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7973) - [119-hres-1641: Honoring the contributions of Indian Americans and supporting the designation o…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hres-1641) - [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation) Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-8425 (as of 2026-10-03).