Abstract: An automatic needle cover is mounted onto the base of a hypodermic needle on a syringe and leaves the needle exposed for initial use, such as for withdrawing blood or the like. A releasable tab is either cut or released, and a resilient support arm pushes a protective cap out past the end of the needle, to cover the end of the needle and prevent an accidental pricking of the user's skin. The contents of the syringe can drip freely out of the cap, or if desired, the cap can be braced against a depression in a rubber stopper of a container, to thereby facilitate realigning the hole in the cap with the needle, so that the needle contents can be discharged into the container. The protective cap is made so that it moves laterally to insure covering the point of the needle so that the point will not accidentally protrude.