We operate an acute care hospital and commonly give vaccinations to our employees and patients, including our annual staff influenza vaccination campaign. Should we give Vaccine Information Statements (VISs) in all of these settings, or does that apply only to patients seen in outpatient settings?

VISs are required to be given and documented when any vaccine covered by the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act (NCVIA) is given to a person of any age in any setting, including influenza vaccine. CDC recommends that VISs should be given and documented any time any vaccine is administered, regardless of the recipient’s age and setting.

Current VISs are available from the CDC’s website at www.cdc.gov/vaccines/hcp/vis/index.html and from the Immunize.org website at www.immunize.org/translations/, where you will also find many VIS translations in other languages.

Immunize.org offers another option with its document containing QR codes for all VISs available at www.immunize.org/wp-content/uploads/catg.d/p2093.pdf. It also offers a document with QR code links to all available translations of the widely used injectable influenza vaccine VIS (www.immunize.org/wp-content/uploads/catg.d/p2092.pdf) which is especially helpful in busy influenza vaccination clinics. A vaccine recipient or parent of a minor child may scan the QR code with their phone to download the current VIS. Provision of an electronic copy of the VIS in this manner complies with federal law.