About ImmuNet
ImmuNet is Maryland’s Immunization Information System (IIS), a confidential and secure database that is HIPAA compliant. It stores an individual’s vaccination records and is a web-based tool for healthcare providers and schools to keep their patients/students vaccinated on time and avoid being under or over-vaccinated.
ImmuNet is required per Maryland Statute §18–109. Please refer to the ImmuNet website here for more information.
ImmuNet offers many benefits to providers, which are listed on our ImmuNet ‘For Providers’ webpage located here.
ImmuNet helps patients by consolidating immunization information into one reliable source. Up-to-date information on their vaccination history helps to prevent unnecessary immunization. Once fully populated with data, ImmuNet will allow you to find almost anything vaccine related for your patient. To become fully populated, every vaccine providers' participation is needed. Please refere to ImmuNet ‘For Providers’ webpage located here for more information.
ImmuNet Access and Enrollment
Authorized users can sign up with our online enrollment form here.
Most computers with reliable internet access are adequate for ImmuNet use. You can contact ImmuNet Support here to help you evaluate your current system technology and identify any gaps.
ImmuNet can be accessed by any internet-connected device, however, it is not developed for mobile devices, so the screens may be difficult to view.
Your account may need to be reactivated. You do not need to re-enroll. Please contact ImmuNet Support here to reactivate your account and provide your login information.
No, ImmuNet is free to authorized users. The only cost that may be incurred is associated with maintaining internet access, and implementing an interface in your Electronic Health Records (EHR) system for data exchange.
No, each authorized user should have his/her own username and password for security reasons. Not everyone in your organization may need access. Access should be limited to those who need to look up patient records, enter data, or order vaccines.
Contact ImmuNet Support
here. It is available during state business hours to address any problems you may be experiencing with ImmuNet.
MDH provides resources for authorized users that are available on the ImmuNet website
here.
ImmuNet is available to authorized users 24 hours a day, seven days a week. ImmuNet Support will respond to issues and questions during state business hours Monday through Friday from 8am to 5pm EST (except state holidays).
No, you only need one ImmuNet account that can be linked to multiple locations. Please contact ImmuNet Support here to link your account to the other locations.
Organizations with ImmuNet Admin User roles can terminate their staff accounts. Refer to the Admin User guide here on how to do this. If there are no Admin Users in the organization, please contact ImmuNet Support here.
Patient Data in ImmuNet
ImmuNet complies with federal/state laws/regulations and requirements to keep ImmuNet information confidential and be HIPAA and FERPA compliant. Only authorized users have access to the information. Please refer to the ImmuNet ‘For Public’ webpage here for more information.
ImmuNet complies with federal/state laws/regulations and requirements to keep ImmuNet information confidential and be HIPAA and FERPA compliant. Only authorized users have access to the information, and are required to sign an ImmuNet Confidentiality and User Agreement here before access.
Senate Bill 626, the Coordination of Immunization Services Act of 2001 established ImmuNet as an opt-out system. Per Maryland Statute §18–109 (a) (6):
“Refusal to permit” means the right of an individual or the parent or guardian of a minor to prevent disclosure to authorized users of individual identifiable information that was reported to ImmuNet.
This means that the data is still reported to ImmuNet but is not further disclosed once the opt-out form (‘refusal to permit’) has been submitted. If you do not wish to share your or your child’s vaccination record with providers in ImmuNet, you can fill out an Opt-Out form here to “opt-out” of ImmuNet. Opted out patients/clients’ ImmuNet information are not viewable to ImmuNet authorized users and not accessible through MyIR Mobile.
No. Per the ImmuNet Confidentiality and User Agreement here, authorized users are required to use ImmuNet data for the ongoing care of a current patient, and “browsing” for records of children not in your care is prohibited.
MDH is required to comply with the CDC Functional Standards, which helps states to ensure data quality in their immunization information systems like ImmuNet. Submitted data undergoes various automated checks and de-duplication to ensure the validity of the data. In some instances, it may be necessary to verify the information with the data submitter. Care should be taken that information is entered accurately and completely, which is why electronic data exchange is preferred over manual data entry.
Per Maryland Statute §18–109 (a) (6): “Refusal to permit” means the right of an individual or the parent or guardian of a minor to prevent disclosure to authorized users of individual identifiable information that was reported to ImmuNet. This means that the data is still reported to ImmuNet but is not further disclosed once the opt-out form (‘refusal to permit’) has been submitted. If you do not wish to share your or your child’s vaccination record with providers in ImmuNet, you can fill out an Opt-Out form here to “opt-out” of ImmuNet. Opted out patients/clients’ ImmuNet information are not viewable to ImmuNet authorized users and not accessible through MyIR Mobile.
ImmuNet complies with federal/state laws/regulations and requirements to keep ImmuNet information confidential and be HIPAA and FERPA compliant. Only authorized users have access to the information, and are required to sign an ImmuNet Confidentiality and User Agreement before access.
ImmuNet allows providers to print all required immunization certificates. The Maryland Statute §18–109 and the Code of Maryland Regulations 10.06.03.07 also allow schools to access the Registry to determine a child's immunization status.
Providers who find an inaccurate record for a patient can correct the record for the patient if the vaccine was administered by your organization and also correct any demographic data for the patient. If there are any inaccurate vaccines not administered by your organization, you can contact the administering organization or contact ImmuNet Support here.
ImmuNet has an automated process (for patients and immunization records) that can merge and/or deduplicate records based on a built-in algorithm.
The record need to be updated. Providers can obtain the vaccination record from the parent and update the record in your EHR or in ImmuNet.
Contact ImmuNet Support here to correct the record.
ImmuNet has an automated deduplication process (for patients and immunization records), and can merge any duplicate records based on a built-in algorithm.
Some DC patients may be in ImmuNet if they see a Maryland provider. Similarly, MD residents who are vaccinated in DC are sent to ImmuNet from the DC IIS through a CDC-initiative for cross-jurisdictional data exchange.
Authorized Users can look up their patients’ vaccination records in ImmuNet. Providers using EHRs with bidirectional data exchange capability can set up to query ImmuNet from their EHRs and may incorporate their patient records into their EHRs.
Requesting Vaccination Records
It is possible that the provider who administered the vaccine(s) did not report the vaccination data to ImmuNet in the past. Reporting vaccination data to ImmuNet became mandatory in Maryland as of October 2019.
Register at MyIR Mobile to access your or your child's vaccination records. Refer to this Quick Reference Guide to help you navigate Maryland MyIR and register to access your or your child's records.
The Maryland Statute §18–109 allows vaccination records to be released to authorized users (such as providers, schools, health departments).
Reporting Data to ImmuNet
All providers who administer a vaccine in Maryland are required to report to ImmuNet. Since July 1, 2022, the exemption in §18–109(d)(6)(II) no longer applies. This means that vaccine providers who administer a vaccine in a nursing facility, an assisted living program, a continuing care retirement community, or a medical day care program are now required to report to ImmuNet.
Providers can submit data to ImmuNet using one of the following methods:
(1)SOAP Web Services (preferred), (2) Secure File Transfer, (3) Flat File Upload, (4) CSV File Upload, or (5) Manual Data Entry. Formats for sending data electronically must be in standard 2.5.1 HL7 or flat file formats. Providers with Electronic Health Records (EHR) should work with their EHR vendors to automate their electronic data submission. See this page for more information about reporting.
Providers can view reporting options on this page. Providers who are not enrolled with ImmuNet can enroll here to get in the queue to be onboarded. Contact your EHR vendor to be assigned a representative, who will help you generate a test file to send to ImmuNet.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has a recommended set of core data elements to be reported to state immunization registries. In addition, reporting from EHR using the national standard HL7 should comply with required fields according to the ImmuNet HL7 specifications here.
Yes, ImmuNet supports bidirectional data exchange capability via web services. The capability includes both HL7 QBP (Query by Parameter) and VXQ (Vaccination Query) messages to query ImmuNet in real-time. Please refer to the ImmuNet specifications here for more information.
Yes, but electronic data exchange is strongly encouraged and preferred.t The provider accepts the responsibility for the submission of vaccination records and may authorize additional office staff members to enter the records. Get ImmuNet access here.
Yes, all vaccinations administered in Maryland are required to be reported to ImmuNet per Maryland Statute §18–109. ImmuNet will also be a source of information available to consult before administering your tetanus and flu shots, helping to avoid unnecessary duplicates.
Please contact your EHR vendor and ImmuNet Support to connect both parties, so we can help you move forward.
The records are automatically sent if your EHR is set up for automatic reporting. If you do not see your patients' data in ImmuNet, it is likely that your EHR is not yet connected to ImmuNet. Please contact your EHR vendor and ImmuNet Support to set up the connection from your EHR to ImmuNet.
Please contact your EHR vendor to check that they added the historical indicator to the records.
Each jurisdiction has specific laws/regulations around reporting. The practices located in Maryland should report to ImmuNet and the ones in DC to the DC registry.
Please contact your EHR vendor to check why those patient records are missing. It’s possible their records may be missing a required field and rejected by ImmuNet. You can also contact ImmuNet Support here to see if the record may be in our Pending queue.
ImmuNet will create new patient records, if the patients don’t already exists in ImmuNet, or update existing patient records, as needed.
Reporting optional data elements (such as mother's maiden name) is highly recommended for better patient matching, however, if your EMR does not capture the information, it can be left blank.
All Maryland hospitals are reporting to ImmuNet so the birth dose should show up in ImmuNet. The only exception is if the birth dose was sent with names such as ‘Baby Boy’ or ‘Baby Girl’ or similar unofficial names, which ImmuNet will reject. In general, providers report a newborn's HepB shot records as a historical once a proper name has been assigned.
The CDC Functional Standards includes goals and targets, which specifies data to be reported to states’ Immunization Information Systems preferably within one day. We recommend it is best if you can add it to your daily workflow to keep the records from accumulating.
Please contact your EHR vendor to fix the issue as it could be that some of the demographic information are required. See the ImmuNet specifications here for the list of required data elements in ImmuNet.
Per Maryland Statute §18–109 all vaccines administered in Maryland are required to be reported to ImmuNet. This includes pharmacies.
This depends on your EHR setup; please check with your vendor. If you no longer see a patient, you can also update the patient status directly in ImmuNet.
This depends on how your EHR is set up to send the data, whether real-time or in batches (once daily, etc.)
Vaccines for Children (VFC) and ImmuNet
The Maryland VFC Program is a federally-funded program that provides vaccines at no cost to children who otherwise might not be vaccinated because of an inability to pay. Because the VFC program is need-based, strong accountability and program stewardship among VFC providers are essential to maintaining a robust program. To learn more about the Maryland VFC program, please visit their MDH page here.
Yes, ImmuNet interacts with the VFC program. When a provider utilizes the full capabilities of ImmuNet, the provider is able to manage his or her complete VFC vaccine inventory (please check the quick reference guide page on how to manage vaccine inventories). The provider will be able to electronically report monthly vaccine usage to the VFC program office.
As the cost of childhood vaccines increases and immunization programs become more complex, there is a greater need to ensure strict adherence to program guidelines. The Maryland VFC Program believes mandating the use of ImmuNet will support your existing efforts to be effective stewards of VFC vaccines.
Once orders show as shipped in ImmuNet, the vaccine order screen will show the company (FedEx or UPS) tracking number. For more information, please refer to the Vaccine Order Status Guide here.
ImmuNet is for all patients, not just VFC.
ImmuNet does not have this capability at this time.
All VFC participants are required to undergo annual training (see here for more information). Stand alone VFC Provider training videos are also available and posted on their website.
MDH does not provide help for manual data entry. We recommend you look into getting an EHR (there may be free/low-cost EHRs out there). Another option is to do CSV File Upload, or outsource a data entry service to help you enter your data into ImmuNet. Please see the ImmuNet reporting webpage for options to report to ImmuNet.
The VFC mandate does not require you to have an EHR or connect your EHR to ImmuNet (as there are other ways to report to ImmuNet), however, EHRs are the least labor-intensive method as you can automate the reporting process with an EHR. Please see the ImmuNet reporting webpage for options to report to ImmuNet.
Yes, you can add private vaccine data to ImmuNet. Please refer to the Manage Vaccines section of the VFC Inventory Ordering guide here.
If the patient is not in ImmuNet, you can add the patient to ImmuNet. Please refer to our Basic Guide to add a new patient in ImmuNet.
VFC vaccines sent to you should last about two months and you should order when your VFC inventory is low.
Yes, each office will still be separate and need to order vaccines separately. That means that each office must have users able to log in for each office.
