The nation’s biggest health insurance companies will continue to cover vaccinations — including those against COVID-19 and seasonal flu — that were previously recommended by a federal advisory committee.

The announcement by America’s Health Insurance Plans, which includes CVS Health’s Aetna, Humana, Cigna, Centene and an array of Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans as members, comes ahead of Thursday’s first meeting of the reconstituted Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, which now has new members chosen by U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a vaccine critic. The committee provides guidance on vaccines to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control.

“Health plans are committed to maintaining and ensuring affordable access to vaccines," AHIP said in a statement Wednesday. “Health plan coverage decisions for immunizations are grounded in each plan’s ongoing, rigorous review of scientific and clinical evidence, and continual evaluation of multiple sources of data.”

The move by AHIP is good news for millions of Americans at a time of year when they flock to........

© Forbes