Maryland will now start providing free recommended vaccines to adults who are underinsured or uninsured.

The program will allow local health departments to provide state-purchased vaccines to people 19 and older across Maryland.

The vaccine initiative comes from a $2.8 million allocation from the General Assembly.

“Nobody should be denied basic health care because of an inability to pay,” said Maryland Gov. Wes Moore. “At a time when the federal government is undermining public health and creating unnecessary confusion around vaccine policy, Maryland is investing, leading with science, and stepping up to make sure our people are protected.”

The vaccines available include COVID-19, measles, flu, pneumonia, RSV and shingles.

Respiratory illnesses are particularly fierce this time of year.

Last season, Maryland saw nearly 5,000 residents hospitalized with COVID and more than 8,000 with the flu.

The Maryland Department of Health released its own vaccination recommendations in lieu of the federal standards set by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in September.

All adults should get their COVID-19 vaccination this fall, according to the Maryland Department of Health. Additionally, all children between six months and two years old should get their shot and children two years to eighteen years old who are at risk.

The standards are stricter than what the CDC recommended and follow the advice of the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Academy of Family Physicians and the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecologists.

Maryland and 14 other states led by Democrats formed their own public health alliance after concerns over the Trump Administration’s Health and Human Services Department vaccine recommendations and other health safeguards in October.

The states make their own recommendations about vaccines and share best practices.

The White House is making unprecedented staffing cuts to HHS.

Many professional medical societies have also expressed concern about looser federal vaccine standards, which have made it harder for some people to get shots.

In May, the Trump administration announced it would stop routinely approving VOID vaccines for people under the age of 65.