VACCINATION RATE — CHILDREN
1227. Hon JACQUI BOYDELL to the Minister for Education and
Training:
I ask this question on behalf of Hon
Martin Aldridge, who is absent on urgent parliamentary business.
I refer to Legislative Council
question without notice 1165 regarding child immunisations and the passage of
the Public Health Amendment (Immunisation Requirements for Enrolment) Act 2019.
(1) How many schoolchildren have
been refused enrolment since the passage of the legislation?
(2) Will the
minister please identify the school and the school region where a refusal to
enrol has occurred?
(3) Has the
department identified any circumstance in which a child has been enrolled
contrary to the requirements of the Public Health Act 2016 or the School
Education Act 1999?
(4) What
assessment or review is being undertaken by the Department of Education to
determine the efficacy of the legislative change and the impact upon
immunisation rates?
Hon SUE
ELLERY replied:
I thank the honourable member for
some notice of the question.
The Public Health Amendment
(Immunisation Requirements for Enrolment) Act 2019 applies to enrolment in
early childhood education and care.
(1)–(2) Data
on the number of children who have been refused enrolment at a public school or
community kindergarten is not recorded centrally by the Department of
Education. Schools identify children applying to enrol in kindergarten programs
whose immunisation status is recorded as not up to date. The data is provided
to the Department of Health, which undertakes follow-up with those families to
support them accessing immunisation services and ensuring that the child's
vaccinations are up to date. The enrolment pack for parents and guardians
provides information on how to meet the new immunisation enrolment requirements.
Non-government schools and childcare services provide their data direct to the
Department of Health.
(3) No.
(4) The
Department of Education is not responsible for formally assessing the efficacy
of the Public Health Amendment (Immunisation Requirements for Enrolment) Act
2019. The department would contribute to any formal evaluation of the impact of
the act on immunisation rates that is undertaken by the Department of Health.
The Department of Health is planning a formal evaluation of the impact of the act
on immunisation rates in 2021.