Government's "Nasty" Vaccine Surprise

May 11, 2012

Government's "Nasty" Vaccine Surprise

A document obtained under the Official Information Act shows that the government plans to link children's vaccinations with parental benefits in the "second Welfare Reform Bill", due to be introduced into Parliament in the second half of this year.

According to Health Report 20120196, the Ministries of Health and Social Development have been working together to explore "opportunities for incentivising parents to ensure children receive their scheduled immunisations."

Under the confidence and supply agreement between the National and Act parties, the government has undertaken to implement the Welfare Working Group recommendation "that beneficiaries be required to ensure that their children complete the 12 Well Child/Tamariki Ora health checks including completion of the immunisation schedule, (unless they make an informed choice not to.)"

The plan to implement the recommendation has been criticised by No Forced Vaccines, an organisation that opposes coerced or forced vaccination.

"First of all, the wording of the recommendation is so ambiguous that it's impossible to know for sure whether parents have to choose between all Well Child checks and all vaccinations or no Well Child checks and no vaccinations, or some other combination," Smith stated, adding that she had sought clarification of this matter from the government but was told that the WWG had disbanded so the answer was unavailable.

"I think it's an insult to vulnerable people for the government to consider any legislation that infringes on parents' rights to decide freely whether they want their children to have either all recommended vaccinations, some of them or none – or for the government to dictate to parents which Well Child checks their children should, or shouldn't have, just because the parents are on a benefit," said Katherine Smith, the spokeswoman for No Forced Vaccines.

"I don't think that people who have well paid jobs or their own successful businesses would put up with being treated in such an arrogant and patronising fashion." Smith added.

Vaccination rates in NZ are at record high levels, and the majority of parents take their children to Well Child/Tamariki Ora health and development checks, Smith observed, "without any compulsion...because most parents support vaccination and also value the advice they can get from Plunket nurses and other Well Child providers."

That the government has been quietly working on legislation to link children's vaccinations with parents' benefits, Smith continued "shows a worrying lack of respect for parents' rights" and "institutional denial" about the potential for vaccinations to cause serious adverse effects that can have long term consequence for children and their families.

"While most children do not suffer any significant side effects after vaccination, there are children up and down the length of NZ whose health and development has been severely damaged by vaccines." Smith said. "Some of the families of these vaccine-injured children have given evidence on this matter the Health Select Committee, so the government cannot claim that it is ignorant of this problem. Given the potential of vaccines to cause devastating effects in some recipients, parents' rights to freely decide about their children's vaccination must be respected and the government must abandon its plans to link vaccinations to any form of government support for financially struggling families."

This press release was issued by No Forced Vaccines. www.noforcedvaccines.org

ENDS

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