Auatralia’s Financial Penalties For Non-Vaccinating Families Backfire

Australia introduced a number of measures to try and force families to vaccinate, including denying them welfare benefits and banning their children from schools and daycare. In response to this discrimination, parents have quit work to stay with their children, began home educating, moved to smaller homes and utilised friends and family for childcare. They have also began to transform from ordinary families minding their own business to families willing to take direct action to defend their rights to make medical decisions for their own children.

The Journal of Public Health Policy wrote:

‘Affected parents offset reduced income by removing children from early childhood learning, reducing work commitments, moving residence to reduce living costs and accessing informal childcare arrangements. Parents reported a greater commitment to their decision not to vaccinate and an increased desire to maintain control over health choices for their children including an unprecedented willingness to become involved in protest action.’

Source:

Journal of Public Health Policy

May 2018, Volume 39, Issue 2, pp 156–169 | Cite as