Attention subscribers - we have launched a new website! Click here to create your website account for free access.

Tennessee starts billing insurance companies a fee for free COVID-19 shots at county health departments

Posted

Anyone going to a county health department in Tennessee for a free COVID-19 shot can now expect to be asked to provide their insurance information, according to a state official.

Tennessee Department of Health spokeswoman Sarah Tanksley said Tuesday the policy went into effect yesterday.

“No one will be denied a vaccine if they are uninsured or under-insured,” she said.

The new request is an extension of the “standard practice for all care at a local health department. If a person has insurance, we bill for what we can, which in the case of the COVID vaccine is the administration fee,” Tanksley said.

The amount the state is billing insurance companies for the administration fee was not immediately available.