02 Dec 2025 Enroll in PA CARES!

All Philadelphia providers enrolled in the VFC Program are eligible.

What is PA CARES? 

The Pennsylvania Children’s Access to Routine and Essential Shots (PA CARES) program is a new state-directed initiative designed to support Vaccines for Children (VFC) providers enrolled in and in good standing with the Pennsylvania and Philadelphia Immunization Programs. 

On October 1, 2025, Governor Shapiro signed Executive Order 2025-02 – Protecting Pennsylvanians’ Health and Freedom by Ensuring Access to Safe and Effective Vaccines. Pursuant to the executive order, PA CARES has been established to ensure children in the Commonwealth who are eligible for VFC keep access to necessary vaccines without cost sharing or added burden, in the event that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) removes or alters vaccine recommendations for certain diseases for the VFC program.

Provider Enrollment

Philadelphia VFC providers are strongly encouraged to enroll in PA CARES.

To enroll, providers must complete and sign the highlighted sections in the PA CARES provider agreement and submit it to vaccines@phila.gov with the subject line “PA CARES Enrollment – [Your Site PIN].” 

Click the button below to download the provider agreement, and make sure to review the instructions below before submitting.

Enrollment Form Instructions

1. Click the “Sign the provider agreement” button above to open the PA CARES enrollment form.

2. Download the form to sign electronically, or print the form to sign manually.

3. Enter Provider Name at the top of page 1 as shown in the image below.

4. Complete all fields on page 9, including: Signature, Date, Name, Title, VFC PIN, Address, City, State, Zip, County, Phone Number.

5. Sign the agreement in the Signature field. To do so, the following are acceptable:

• Sign via the “use a certificate” option in the Adobe PDF.
• Add your signature using the “add a signature” tool.
• Type the signature manually, following the note “/s/” (see sample form below for reference).
• Hand-draw your signature using the draw tool.

6. For electronic completion, save the form and send it to vaccines@phila.gov with the subject line “PA CARES Enrollment – [Your Site PIN].” For manual completion, scan the form and email it to vaccines@phila.gov with the subject line “PA CARES Enrollment – [Your Site PIN]” or fax the form to 215-238-6948. If you choose to fax the form, please also email vaccines@phila.gov with the subject line “PA CARES Enrollment – [Your Site PIN]” and let us know you have submitted the form via fax. 

More Information

On November 20-21, 2025, two sessions of an all-provider townhall webinar were offered to introduce PA CARES and provide an opportunity for VFC providers to ask questions. View the FAQ and presentation slides from those sessions below, as well as a sample enrollment form:

• PA CARES FAQ
  • Please disregard reference to PIERS and the PA CARES resource account in this FAQ. While PA CARES is a state directed program, the Philadelphia Immunization Program will facilitate PA CARES for Philadelphia providers. Philadelphia providers will still be required to report vaccine administration and order vaccines through PhilaVax, not PIERS.
• PA CARES Townhall Slides
• PA CARES Sample Enrollment Form

Information on vaccine ordering and distribution is forthcoming and will include any requirements our vaccine distributor may have for enrolled PA CARES providers to order and receive vaccine. Please direct any questions to vaccines@phila.gov with the subject line “PA CARES Question – [Your Site PIN].”