VFC Population Estimates Survey (PES)

Attention: Program Managers, Public Health Advisors and Vaccine Coordinators

Warning: All grantees are required to annually complete the Population Estimates Survey (PES).

Why Provide Data for this Survey?

Data provided through this survey is vital to funding requests made to Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and CDC to support vaccine purchase needs. Additionally, data obtained from the PES is used to make projections and analysis regarding your vaccine needs and monitoring. Please note that once your Population Estimates Survey has been approved, the data is used to populate your Vaccine Forecasting Application.

Determining the number of children eligible for VFC vaccine is based on eligibility criteria. However, determining the number of children a project proposes to support with 317 and State/Local funds is more difficult since there are no eligibility criteria. Because 317 grant funds are discretionary and can vary considerably each year, projects must decide how many children they can support using 317 funds. If 317 funds are not adequate to support project needs, the project must either find additional funds or reduce the number of children who will be supported by this funding category. It is very important to realistically assess how many non-VFC eligible children can be supported given the amount of 317 and State/Local funds that you expect to receive. Remember, the addition of privately insured children to the estimated VFC eligible categories (Medicaid, No Insurance, American Indian/Alaska Natives and the Underinsured immunized at Federally Qualified Health Centers/Rural Health Centers - FQHCs/RHCs) should total 100% of your 0-18 year population. Accuracy in establishing population figures is essential for consistency and standardization.

For 2009 and beyond, CDC will be pre-populating the data that comprises the VFC-eligible population with standardized, national data sources. For further information on this process, including history and guiding principles, please see the document titled “Final Recommendations for Improving the Estimate of Vaccine Need for the Vaccines for Children Program.”