The government says the threat of its policy of axing childcare payments for parents who fail to immunise their children has increased vaccination rates, as the cut-off date fast approaches.
Parents who list themselves as “conscientious objectors” to vaccination will no longer be able to access the childcare benefit, childcare rebate and the Family Tax Benefit part A end-of-year supplement from 18 March.
“If you’ve not had your child immunised or not entered into an arrangement for catch-ups, you will be accruing a debt which will have to be paid back,” the social services minister, Christian Porter, said. “People who don’t do the right thing will find themselves either with a debt that they will have to repay, or when we are certain that the vaccinations haven’t occurred their childcare payments will stop.”
The education minister, Simon Birmingham, claimed the policy was working.
“We’ve seen a 24% reduction in the number of conscientious objectors around Australia. [There are] 9,500 fewer conscientious objectors than there were 12 months ago,” he says. “We are seeing growth in the number of immunisations of young children that are occurring, lifts from 90% to 92%.”
The government is aiming for a 95% immunity rate.
“This has been a very successful public health policy. The more children that are vaccinated, the safer all children are, and getting that herd immunity is absolutely critical, getting those vaccination rates right up, 95% is what we seek,” the prime minister, Malcolm Turnbull, says.
The Coalition announced its “no jab, no pay” policy in April last year.
