Saving cash on vaccines costs lives, says expert

THOUSANDS of Australians are dying because of poor access to critical vaccines, driving the country’s immunisation record to a dangerous new low.

Australia’s leading infectious diseases expert, Professor Robert Booy, said lives were being lost while the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee refused to “exercise discretion” and approve jabs against the flu, meningococcal and other killer illnesses.

A vaccine requires PBAC consent before it can be offered free to the public via the National Immunisation Program.

“There could be as many as 4000 flu deaths this year, including a dozen children, while meningococcal kills 10 per cent of sufferers, and the B strain is at least half of that total burden,” Prof Booy said.

While state governments can independently fund vaccines, any programs are typically short-term and targeted at specific age groups, leaving most people with a hefty bill that can run into hundreds of dollars.

“Australia has been one of the leaders in the world in recent decades but we are dangerously slipping back. We don’t value vaccination as highly as other comparable countries like Canada or the UK,” said Prof Booy.

“We don’t put any value on the social benefit, which includes herd immunity, and we discount the cost of long-term benefits of disease prevention.

“If you lose your legs to meningococcal, you’re not going to get them back. Your costs don’t come down over time.”

While figures released this week show the number of fully immunised Australian children has reached 95 per cent, vaccination against deadly diseases for other Australians is as low as 49 per cent.

In Queensland, there have been 262 cases of meningococcal since 2014, and experts warn that an epidemic is looming.