Using standing orders for vaccination in your medical practice allows appropriately trained healthcare professionals — who are permitted to do so under state law — to assess a patient's need for vaccination, determine if there are contraindications and precautions, and then to administer vaccine without obtaining an individual physician’s written order.

Numerous studies have shown that standing orders, carried out by nurses or other qualified healthcare professionals, are one of the most consistently effective means for increasing vaccination rates and reducing missed opportunities for vaccination, thereby improving quality of care.

CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommends the use of standing orders to increase adult vaccination rates. Standing orders may also be useful when vaccinating children and teens.

Exactly who is authorized to administer vaccines under standing orders varies by state law. To find out which medical personnel are legally permitted to administer vaccines under standing orders in your state, contact your state immunization program manager.

Are you interested in starting a standing orders program in your practice setting, but perhaps aren’t sure where to begin? The Immunization Action Coalition (IAC) has materials that help make standing orders easy to implement. 

Standing orders templates for routinely recommended vaccines

IAC has created standing orders templates for all vaccines that are routinely recommended for administration to children, teens and adults. These standing orders are based on ACIP's vaccine recommendations and are reviewed for technical accuracy by CDC staff.  IAC updates the content of its standing orders whenever ACIP makes changes in a vaccine's recommendations.

You can find IAC’s standing orders templates for vaccines on IAC's standing orders Web page. Some examples follow:

Access all of IAC's standing orders templates.

To be notified when new or revised standing orders templates become available, subscribe to IAC's free weekly news service, IAC Express, which is sent to more than 50,000 healthcare professionals every Wednesday.

Materials in this section are updated as new information and vaccines become available. The Vaccine Education Center staff regularly reviews materials for accuracy.

You should not consider the information in this site to be specific, professional medical advice for your personal health or for your family's personal health. You should not use it to replace any relationship with a physician or other qualified healthcare professional. For medical concerns, including decisions about vaccinations, medications and other treatments, you should always consult your physician or, in serious cases, seek immediate assistance from emergency personnel.