Tony Abbott to cut childcare benefits for parents who refuse to vaccinate their children - Women's Agenda

Tony Abbott to cut childcare benefits for parents who refuse to vaccinate their children

Prime Minister Tony Abbott has announced he will introduce legislation to ensure parents who refuse to vaccinate their children will no longer receive childcare benefits from January 1, 2016.

The decision comes following controversy surrounding the rise of the anti-vaccination movement in Australia. An anti-vaccination advocate from the United States received significant backlash when she planned a visit to Australia earlier this year, which she was subsequently forced to cancel, signaling the rising concern about the health risks of the anti-vaccination movement. But despite this recent controversy, the number of conscientious objectors to vaccinations in Australia has risen over the last decade.

There are currently 39,000 children under the age of seven who are not vaccinated because their parents have registered as conscientious objectors, according to the Australian Children Immunisation Register, up from 15,000 ten years ago.

As a result, the prime minister has decided to pass legislation to discourage conscientious objectors. Parents who refuse vaccination will have their childcare rebate, their childcare benefit and their family tax benefit cut from the beginning of next year.

Parents of children who are medically unable to receive vaccinations will be exempt from the cuts, as will parents who object on religious grounds. However, the prime minister has introduced a new regulation requiring parents in this situation to prove they have an established connection to an organised religion that objects to vaccination.

“The Government is extremely concerned at the risk this poses to other young children and the broader community,” Abbott said.

“The choice made by families not to immunise their children is not supported by public policy or medical research nor should such action be supported by taxpayers in the form of child care payments.”

He said the removal of the childcare benefit intended to keep children in childcare who are vaccinated safe from the spread of preventable illnesses.

“Parents who vaccinate their children should have confidence that they can take their children to childcare without the fear that their children will be at risk of contracting a serious or potentially life-threatening illness because of the conscientious objections of others,” he said.

Another addition to the legislation requires families to have their child’s vaccination status checked at the end of every year, rather than only at aged 1, 2 and 5, as per the previous legislation. This yearly vaccination check will determine whether or not families receive the childcare benefit, tax benefit and childcare rebate the following financial year.

Opposition leader Bill Shorten has announced his support for the change.

“Labor supports promoting the safety of our children. We believe fundamentally in the science of vaccination.”

The legislation will need to be approved by parliament before it is enacted.

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