New immunisation strategy sparks debate as vaccination rates decline

Pharma News: A new strategy is set to guide the nation’s immunisation efforts over the next five years, responding to technological advances, shifting community sentiments, and concerning declines in vaccination coverage, which have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

With the current National Immunisation Strategy (NIS) expiring in December 2024, the Department of Health launched a rather quick public consultation from 22 May to 19 June.

Research Australia, in its submission, noted, “Several aspects of the response to the COVID-19 pandemic have affected attitudes to vaccines, including the withdrawal of the AstraZeneca’s Vaxzevria Covid vaccine linked to reports of adverse health events and the impact of long COVID on people who were vaccinated, which have shaken the widely held belief that vaccines are safe and entirely prevent infection. These may have contributed to ‘vaccine scepticism’ in parts of the Australian population, and reduce future vaccination rates, including for seasonal influenza.

“These aspects of the COVID response need to be fully investigated to better understand how they influence public attitudes to the National Immunisation Program and what can be done to counter the negative consequences and rebuild public confidence.”

Professor Wantarri ‘Wanta’ Pawu, a respected Warlpiri elder who was admitted to the highest order of traditional leadership by the Warlpiri elders in 2008, expressed his concerns in his submission to the COVID-19 Royal Commission Terms of Reference Inquiry.

“When Covid came, police came and they knew how to scare the Warlpiri people. The government deceived us, using the medical profession and the police. They knew that if they could get my father, the senior elder, to get the needle, then everyone else would get the needle too. The Covid-19 government response and injection roll-out was very cruel to our young people,” he wrote.

The Royal Australasian College of Physicians (RACP) strongly advocated for the development of culturally safe approaches for underserved populations, including First Nations people, culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities, LGBTIQ+ individuals, and those in remote and rural areas.

Medicines Australia emphasised the need for vaccination targets in their submission.

“Evidence-informed vaccination targets should be developed for all publicly funded vaccines. This would help drive performance and accountability across all age groups and risk-based populations. Broader reaching targets will enable the NIS to have a genuine prevention and life course approach.

“The NIS should incorporate strategies identified by the recently completed HTA review of methods and policies to improve timely access to vaccines. This includes valuing prevention and broader societal benefits of vaccines and streamlining HTA processes related to vaccines funding.”

Research Australia further stressed that merely strengthening existing partnerships and investments is insufficient. The first step, they argue, is to assess national capabilities in R&D for new vaccines and related products to identify gaps in infrastructure, funding, expertise, and relationships.

The organisation highlighted partnerships like those between the Victorian Government, Australian Government, and Moderna for vaccine manufacturing but noted a lack of reference to collaborations in vaccine development with Australian researchers. Similar omissions include partnerships between the SA Government, Australian Government, and BioCina for mRNA vaccine research, and the University of Queensland’s collaboration with Sanofi and Emory University.

Research Australia also suggested a coordinating role for the Australian Centre for Disease Control (CDC), currently under development, but noted its absence in the NIS consultation paper. They highlighted the relevance of the Australian Government COVID-19 Response Inquiry report, which was also not mentioned.

Additionally, the National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance (NCIRS), funded by the Australian and NSW governments, should be explicitly recognised in the new Strategy for its role in coordinating and harnessing Australia’s research and data analysis capabilities.

“We wish to highlight the importance of access to funded vaccines for people who are immunocompromised due to inborn errors of immunity. This is one of the main groups of the Australian population that are at greatest risk of recurrent and severe infections. It is therefore important that this group has improved access to funded vaccines, to protect against vaccine-preventable diseases,” commented Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy (ASCIA) President A/Professor Theresa Cole and CEO Jill Smith in their submission.

RACP and Medicines Australia also support the development of an Australian no-fault vaccine compensation scheme for vaccine-related adverse events for all vaccinations. They argue that this could help combat vaccine hesitancy and align Australia with countries like New Zealand, United Kingdom, United States, Japan, and South Korea.

However, lessons should be learned from the shortcomings of the Covid vaccination compensation scheme, which has faced criticism for long processing times, strict qualifying parameters, and insufficient compensation amounts to cover medical expenses.

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