HANSARD
SITTING CALENDAR
SEARCH
LIVE BROADCAST
Hansard Dynamic Member Index
House of Assembly - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, First Session (54-1)
2018-05-30 Daily Xml
Contents
Pdf Xml

Meningococcal B Strain Vaccination

Mr BELL (Mount Gambier) (11:18): I move:

That this house—

(a) recognises the high rates of South Australians affected by the meningococcal B strain;

(b) establish a committee to investigate the effectiveness of the meningococcal B strain vaccination as a state government-funded vaccination program; and

(c) calls on the state government to implement a vaccination program against the meningococcal B strain for all South Australians.

It is very pleasing to see bipartisan support for the previous motion tabled here today, and I am hopeful that this will continue into this motion because this motion is about saving lives. I find it unconscionable that meningococcal B is a preventable disease. There is a vaccine but cost and awareness are factors that need to be addressed by this house. Meningococcal B can strike with very little warning and the impact of contracting this disease can range from the loss of limbs, such as fingers and toes, through to sight and hearing problems and, in the most severe cases, the loss of life. Those who are most at risk are babies and children up to the age of five, followed by teenagers and young adults from 15 to 24 years; however, this disease does not discriminate and can strike at any age.

Meningococcal B is an acute bacterial infection that, if the symptoms are not recognised and acted on immediately, can cause death within hours. Imagine your cheeky and adorable baby playing happily and within hours you are in hospital with your precious baby struggling to survive. This was the terrifying reality of parents, Nathan Braddock and Emma Smith of Mount Gambier earlier this year. Their six-month-old son, Jordan Braddock, had a fever and his mother, Emma, gave him Panadol. Concerned that Jordan did not drink his morning bottle, Emma made the decision to take him to a local medical clinic. By the time she arrived at the clinic, a rash had broken out on his face and Emma was advised that she should immediately proceed to hospital. In Emma's words, 'Everything just happened so quickly.'

The Royal Flying Doctor Service with specialist paediatric MedSTAR staff and equipment were dispatched to Mount Gambier. Tragically, Jordan lost his life due to this insidious disease while the retrieval team was on its way to Mount Gambier, despite the best efforts of staff at the Mount Gambier hospital. Within two weeks, Mount Gambier had its second case of meningococcal B diagnosed this year with a 15-year-old teenager falling victim to this disease. SA Health and the department for education and child development worked together with the high school where the teenager attended, informing students and their families of the recent case of meningococcal and provided advice as to what precautions should be taken. Once again, the Mount Gambier community were alarmed that the disease would spread throughout the community and more residents would fall victim to it. Thankfully, to date, no further cases have been diagnosed.

So far in 2018, there have been at least six confirmed cases of meningococcal B disease in South Australia. At this time last year, there had been only one case of meningococcal B diagnosed. To give insight into the prevalence of this disease, in South Australia in 2004 there were 11 reported cases of meningococcal B, and this number has steadily been rising ever since; in 2013, there were 20 cases; in 2014, there were 32 cases; and in 2017, there were 36 cases. A number of other states within Australia have also seen a rise in the number of meningococcal cases diagnosed. Victoria had 26 cases in 2014, and this rose to 50 in 2016. Similarly, New South Wales had 35 cases in 2014, and this number rose to 43 in 2016.

Symptoms of the disease include fever, nausea or vomiting, drowsiness, dizziness, lack of energy, confusion and the distinctive rash which indicates bleeding into the skin. A rash may start with a few spots or blisters and then spread very quickly and develop into purple bruise-like blotches. If any of these symptoms are present and you have the slightest concern, presentation at the nearest medical clinic or hospital is highly recommended. Two vaccines have been launched to combat the meningococcal B strain, the first in Australia in March 2014, and the second in April 2018.

Neither of these vaccines are subsidised by the government. During the recent election, the Labor government made a pledge that vaccinations would be free for all children under the age of two. I must say that the previous Labor government has certainly led the way in this area. This was a saving of up to $500 per child. It was estimated that this election pledge would cost $24.5 million over four years. To some, that might seem a lot of money; however, when one of your children or someone in your community is inflicted with this disease, it is a small price to pay.

The state Liberal government are currently reviewing the meningococcal B vaccine, with health minister, Stephen Wade, noting that:

…while meningococcal disease is rare, B-strain is the most prevalent in the state and the Government is committed to developing a targeted, local response to have the maximum impact on the disease.

I would argue to the minister that there is already a policy out there that could be implemented. Minister Wade said:

There is significant community concern at the need to protect from meningococcal disease and we will act to lift protection in the most effective way…

Part of my motion is to encourage the state Liberal government to establish a committee, report back to the parliament on the cost of funding this vaccination and report on the effectiveness of the vaccine currently available. This committee would need to identify the age groups that are most at risk and how they will implement vaccination programs for those age groups. Again going to an initiative from the previous Labor government, South Australia led the nation with Australia's first meningococcal B study. A quote from the press release:

Sixty thousand eligible teenagers and young adults from across South Australia who are enrolled in Years 10, 11 and 12 in 2017 will be offered free of charge vaccinations against Meningococcal B as part of a state wide study into the impact of immunising large community groups against the disease.

The study—B Part of It—is being led by the University of Adelaide in partnership with SA Health and has been approved by the Women's and Children's Health Network Human Research Ethics Committee. Vaccinations [are] available to students in participating schools across South Australia during 2017 and 2018.

'South Australia has had the highest rate of meningococcal disease in Australia since 2012, with more cases [occurring every year]

I have highlighted that before.

…Associate Professor Helen Marshall, Director of the Vaccinology and Immunology Research Trials Unit at the Women's and Children's Hospital and the University of Adelaide's Robinson Research Institute [said] 'It is vital we learn more about the disease and the benefits of vaccinating against Meningococcal…

Whilst it is important that vaccination programs are implemented to protect our community, we are also beholden to ensure that the vaccine introduced will offer the required protection. That is where we need the committee to be doing that work.

I also encourage the government to undertake an education program for the community, as currently many families are not aware that there are a number of strains of meningococcal and that routine childhood vaccinations, as covered by the PBS, do not immunise against the meningococcal B strain. As I said right at the start, that awareness is very important to make sure that parents are aware—and certainly, as the local member, I was not aware—that the B strain is not covered under the national immunisation scheme.

We need to provide reassurance to the families that, as elected members of the Parliament of South Australia, we are concerned about the prevalence of meningococcal B in South Australia and that we are going to take strong action against it. This concern has been no more evident than in a petition, which I will table today, which carries 4,544 signatures from residents of Mount Gambier and districts. This was undertaken by Alli Schleef, who is the driving force behind the petition, and also the Justice for Jordan brand, seeking to have the meningococcal B vaccine funded for all South Australian children. It reads:

The Petition of the undersigned residents of Mount Gambier & Surrounding Districts, respectfully express their concern that the B strain of the Meningococcal disease is not covered by the National Immunisation Program.

Your Petitioners [the people of that area] therefore request that your Honourable House will call on the State Government to fund the B Strain vaccination of Meningococcal for South Australian children to prevent any further deaths from this preventable disease.

In a very short period of time—a matter of eight weeks, I believe—that petition gained 4,544 signatures. I will table it just before question time today. I would like to thank Alli for the time she has taken to deliver this petition to over 36 locations around Mount Gambier, encouraging residents to sign the petition; the organisations that house it in their businesses; the wonderful work that Alli has done to keep the awareness of this alive; and, of course, the people from my community who would like to see this heartache and preventable disease eradicated from South Australia. With that, I commend the motion to the house.

Mr MALINAUSKAS (Croydon—Leader of the Opposition) (11:32): I rise in support of the motion put forward by the member for Mount Gambier and I congratulate him on his advocacy in this incredibly important area. I know this is an issue which is close to the member for Mount Gambier's heart as a local member who I know is close to his constituents and familiar with issues that are in the minds of the residents of Mount Gambier. I know this is one that is important to him, and he is right to advocate for this important cause.

As the member for Mount Gambier outlined, meningococcal B is a horrible condition that results in very severe consequences for those members of our community who are inflicted with it. Meningococcal B is indeed deadly. For those people who contract meningococcal B, they are highly vulnerable to suffering the most severe of consequences that any medical condition can present, that being death. For those people who survive meningococcal B, they are too often left with other severe consequences, albeit with their life intact. It is a killer. It is a deadly disease.

But the thing about meningococcal B that is so significant is that it is entirely preventable. The member for Newland, as someone with a scientific background, would well appreciate that vaccinations are incredibly empowering achievements on behalf of the medical and scientific profession. Meningococcal B has a vaccine that can quite literally save lives. I cannot begin to imagine how utterly painful it would be for a parent of a child who was lost to meningococcal B, suffering unimaginable pain, in the knowledge that it is preventable.

We live in a First World nation. We live in a state with an incredible standard of living on any global measure. It is within our capacity as a parliament, as a state, as it is within the capacity of this government to see to a far greater uptake of the meningococcal B vaccine.

Meningococcal B vaccine, despite being readily available in terms of supply, is not readily available to most South Australian families as a consequence of its cost. As the member for Mount Gambier outlined earlier, the cost of meningococcal B vaccine can be up to $500 per person or child vaccinated. In the real world, this is a cost that is often beyond the reach of too many South Australians. Those South Australians who enjoy higher incomes—a group that everyone in this chamber is a member of—may well have it within their capacity or disposable income to provide for their children to be vaccinated. For too many South Australians that is not the case.

I would hope that everybody in this place—I certainly know it is the case for the member for Mount Gambier and everyone on this side of the chamber—sees that there is a value proposition that goes to where we see ourselves as a society. I would have thought that all of us would share the ideal that anybody and everybody should get access to life-saving vaccinations, particularly for our children, regardless of their income. I passionately believe that when it comes to the provision of health care, one segment of our community should not be deprived of life-saving treatments simply because they earn less money than another. Yet that is exactly the situation that we, as a state, find ourselves in with meningococcal B, and we are capable of fixing this.

At the last state election, the Labor Party took to the election a fully costed policy: $24.5 million dollars to provide children under the age of two access to the meningococcal B vaccine. Is this the 100 per cent result? No. We would like every child in this state to have access to the meningococcal B vaccine. Providing it to all children under the age of two is eminently affordable. It was something that we as a party prioritised at the last election, and it is something that this resolution calls on the new government to prioritise. It is an eminently reasonable proposition.

I am not going to stand up here and be unnecessarily partisan on this. I do not think the members opposite want to see children under the age of two succumb to meningococcal B disease for the sake of $24.5 million dollars. I do not think they want that, which is why they should support this resolution in an unamended form. The health minister has decided to put together a committee to review a way forward on this matter. If the government decides to pick up the former government's policy, the Labor Party's policy, of a $24.5 million dollar investment to provide every child under the age of two this vaccine, I will be the first to applaud it. We as an opposition would welcome that. It would be a progressive step forward.

If indeed the government wants to go further than that, we would welcome and applaud that. But why the delay? The policy is there to be picked up and run with. The policy is fully costed. Had Labor won the last election, the policy would be in place this week: 1 June was what our policy was. So I call on the government to run with the member for Mount Gambier's motion. Its intention is good. It is utterly practical. It is affordable and it will literally save lives. We are capable of achieving this as a parliament. The government is capable of delivering this. I call on the government to support the motion unamended. It would be a very good day for many South Australian families.

Too many parents at the moment are going to bed at night concerned that meningococcal B will be inflicted on their child but that they are largely helpless to do anything about it because of the vaccine's exorbitant cost. This government can solve that problem. I call on them to do that. We can work on this together, and we can get a good outcome for many South Australian families.

Dr HARVEY (Newland) (11:38): I move to amend the motion as follows:

Replace the second two paragraphs, (b) and (c), with:

(b) notes that the Minister for Health and Wellbeing has established an expert working group, consisting of experts in the field of meningococcal disease and immunisation; and

(c) notes the expert working group is developing recommendations on the optimal response to meningococcal B for South Australia.

We are all in agreement that invasive meningococcal disease is a rare but devastating disease. The meningococcus, which is the causative agent of this disease, is most commonly carried in the back of the nose by otherwise healthy people, but for reasons that are largely unclear the organism can invade from there into places like the bloodstream to cause systemic disease and can progress further still to cause meningitis.

The most common serotypes responsible for invasive meningococcal disease are types A, B, C, W and Y, and vaccines against these types are serotype specific; that is, a vaccine protecting again serotype C, for example, does not protect against serotype B. The scary thing about this disease is that frequently it commences with little more than flu-like symptoms, but within a matter of hours it can progress very quickly to cause fatal disease and permanent disability.

All deaths, including those recently in the member for Mount Gambier's electorate, are a tragedy, and this is the reason that the Minister for Health and Wellbeing is working hard to explore all options to ensure that an appropriate evidence-based, effective and safe response to the disease is implemented to reduce the likelihood of similar tragedies occurring again in the future.

Nationally, the incidence of invasive meningococcal disease is increasing, mostly from the W strain in other states, and the state government is working with the federal government to implement, as of 1 July 2018, a statewide program to vaccinate against the A, C, W and Y types of disease. Currently, though, the serotype B vaccine is not included on this schedule, despite the fact that there is one available. It is a relatively recent vaccine in terms of its licence, and in fact it was quite a tricky vaccine to develop in the first place.

It is true that the vaccine is expensive, and this clearly makes it difficult for many to be vaccinated. The Marshall Liberal government recognises that the serotype B strain is more prevalent in South Australia than in other states and territories and is the leading cause of meningococcal disease in South Australia. Again, this is why the government is committed to developing a targeted local response—in order to have the maximum impact on the disease in South Australia.

The Minister for Health and Wellbeing established a multisectorial expert group on 26 April this year that consists of SA Health clinicians and immunologists as well as independent experts in the field of meningococcal disease and immunisation more broadly. The working group is currently developing a set of recommendations on the optimal response to this disease for the state of South Australia.

In its current review of recommendations relating to the serotype B meningococcal disease vaccine, the peak national clinical advisory group on immunisation, ATAGI, has highlighted the need to optimise vaccination against a range of target groups. There are a number of groups that are at risk of meningococcal disease. They include children under the age of two. They also include Indigenous children under the age of five, adolescents in their teens and 20s and, of course, those of any age who may have an underlying illness. The working group will look at this review being undertaken by ATAGI but will not necessarily wait for their final findings.

I would add that understanding the interaction between these different risk groups is very important. Particularly when you are talking about an organism such as this that is predominantly passed around the community without people even knowing it is there, it is important to understand which groups are transmitting it versus those who are getting sick. They are not always the same group. I know that in other cases the children can be responsible for passing it around but it is in fact the elderly who will get sick. It is important to consider all this when determining how best to deal with the problem.

It is also incredibly common, right around the world, for different vaccination programs to be employed in different jurisdictions in order to best meet local conditions. The current statewide study that the member for Mount Gambier referred to, 'B Part of It', which is led by Associate Professor Helen Marshall, looking at around 60,000 South Australians, is looking at a very important part of how this vaccine can impact on herd immunity in our community. This is why it is so important that the work be done to identify the best plan for South Australia to deal with the particular situation that we find ourselves in in this state. The working group will consider all options for a community vaccination program.

The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Before I go ahead, the amendment is in order. I call on the member for Kaurna.

Mr PICTON (Kaurna) (11:45): The amendment may be in order but it is a horrible, hopeless amendment. The opposition wholeheartedly supports the original motion from the member for Mount Gambier and completely disagrees with this amendment being moved by the government—this amendment to delay, this amendment to sit on their hands, this amendment to push things to a committee, rather than take action on this very serious public health risk that is facing the community in South Australia now.

We know that there is the ability for the government to take action. We did the work. We have come up with the plan. We took the plan to the election. There is a $24.5 million plan that has been costed by the parliamentary budget office. We have given all those details to the government and they are able to implement that plan now.

If we had been elected, that plan would have been coming in from 1 June, this Friday. That would have meant that families across South Australia would have been able to access vaccines for kids zero to two years old to cover themselves for meningococcal B. Families across South Australia know the concern of this disease. They have seen the devastating effects across the state, whether it is in Adelaide, or particularly the effects that have happened down in the South-East and in the member for Mount Gambier's community, where I know he has been in touch with a number of the families affected.

We know that this is a disease that is affecting South Australia more than other states, which highlights the need for our state government to take action and to take action swiftly. We know that families are not able to afford this vaccine on their own. We know that it can cost up to $500 for a family to be vaccinated against meningococcal B, and that is a cost that most families cannot afford. This is something where the government should be taking action. The government has a role to provide that support and coverage for families across South Australia to ensure that they are covered.

We have seen already this week some new statistics from National Pharmacies showing that the rate they have been selling the meningococcal B vaccine has gone through the roof already this financial year—at least 40 per cent higher than last year. We know that there is a very significant demand, but in South Australia and in Australia it should not be dependent on how much money your parents have as to whether or not you can get coverage for a serious life-threatening disease for kids. That is not the sort of health system that we should have in this country and we think that it is something where the state government has a role.

We have pushed the issue time and time again with the federal government to cover this vaccine across the country. It has not got approval from the federal government to do that, largely because we see meningococcal B impact this state more than other states; therefore, this is something where the state government has the ability to take action. They have the information available to them, but what have they done? They have sent it to a working group, a work task group or whatever they have called it. It is really just a complete delaying tactic from the government to do that.

This was established over a month ago, but we have seen no evidence of what its outputs have been and no recommendations have come out. We think this task group has had more than enough time to investigate the issue and provide some reports and recommendations to the government to take action. Every day, every week, every month that this is further delayed puts more kids at risk.

We are calling upon the government to stop delaying this matter and take action. If they want to look at the broader issue of people over the age of two being vaccinated—of course, we need to look at catch-up programs for the community for that—then that is something the committee and the task group could look into at length to develop another model. However, there is no need to delay vaccinations for the zero to two-year-old cohort because we have the plan and we have the costings. We could be taking action right now to procure those vaccines and distribute them throughout the community to ensure that family members across South Australia are able to vaccinate their kids.

We know that the demand for that is very high and we know that families want to do this. The member for Mount Gambier, the Leader of the Opposition and I have spoken to a number of victims and people who have had family members struck by this horrible disease. We do not want to see that happen to anybody else. We do not want to see any other families going through that torment. So many of us in this house have children ourselves and have been able to vaccinate our kids because we can afford it, but that is not the case for so many families in South Australia who cannot afford this vaccine.

For the government to come into this house and take what is a very well thought through and heartfelt motion from the member for Mount Gambier—who used to be in their party—representing his community on this very important public health issue, and seek to amend that in this house to make it a delaying, nothing motion that basically just pats the government on the back for setting up a committee is disgraceful. I think this is something on which this house should have a strong view. A vaccine program is needed and we should be implementing a vaccine program for kids in South Australia. I am very disappointed that the government will not be supporting that, and that they will be opposing a motion whereby we are supporting a vaccine program for South Australia.

Any number of experts will tell you that that is exactly what is needed. Any number of experts will tell you that South Australia needs this vaccine for kids in this state. It is confusing for parents in terms of how to get coverage and the number of different vaccines. A number of people think that their children are covered by the existing National Immunisation Program for meningococcal B, but, sadly, that is not on the National Immunisation Program. We have seen studies showing a high level of confusion amongst parents as to what exactly their kids are covered for and whether or not they need to procure other vaccines and what the costs of doing that are.

I believe that the state government have the responsibility and the ability to take action, and they could be doing that very quickly. If they had taken that up from day one, we would be seeing that program coming in from this Friday. Families across South Australia would be able to access that vaccine, our immunisation rate would go through the roof and many more families would be protected from what is a horrible case of this B strain vaccine. We saw 22 of those cases occur in South Australia last year, and already we have seen nine cases of the B vaccine in South Australia this year, which is a significant increase.

This is a disease that is on the increase in South Australia. I hope that we do not see more cases between now and the end of the year and that we can get as many kids as possible vaccinated to prevent that from happening. However, that is going to require the government taking some action, supporting this motion from the member for Mount Gambier and not continuing to delay what is very clear—what all the experts believe is something that should be happening in South Australia and that can be happening in South Australia. It just needs the government actually to support it.

Mr ELLIS (Narungga) (11:53): I am pleased to rise today to support this motion from the member for Mount Gambier, which supports state efforts to combat the devastating meningococcal B strain, the most predominant strain of this invasive, quick-onset, deadly disease. Most importantly, I note the amendments which I wholeheartedly support, which were outlined previously and moved by the member for Newland and which do acknowledge the fantastic work that has been done and is being done by the new government and the new Minister for Health and Wellbeing.

In rising, I recognise the efforts of the recently established expert working group by the Minister for Health and Wellbeing in the other place, which has been charged with developing a set of recommendations for the best response to beating this disease. It is with particular interest that I feel moved to support this motion and its amendments and to commend the member for Mount Gambier for raising it, noting that his community has also been directly impacted by recent deaths from meningococcal B, and for his efforts to recognise the prevalence of this particular strain.

For many years in the Narungga electorate and particularly in the Copper Coast area, meningococcal and its devastating impact on families has been highlighted by the Paige Weatherspoon Foundation, set up by Nicky and Dwayne Weatherspoon upon the death of their 22-month-old daughter Paige in 2000. In the 18 years since, Nicky and Dwayne and foundation helpers and volunteers have held Violet Day on 1 August—which was Paige's birthday—every year. They have raised nearly $500,000 and have done much to shine a light on the symptoms and devastation of meningococcal disease, which was virtually unheard of in my district prior to the death of young Paige Weatherspoon.

It is how quickly the disease spreads and kills that is so disturbing—that and the fact that its symptoms are common to minor illnesses. Nicky and Dwayne have told the story many times over the years of how Paige had looked tired and had a temperature, but it was taken as just a typical childhood virus. Her mother had given her a Panadol and tucked her into bed as part of their solution.

Paige slept until lunchtime and laid on the couch in the afternoon. She still had a temperature but nothing appeared out of the ordinary. By 10.30pm that night Paige had complained of sore legs, and Nicky noticed bruise-like spots on them. She rang the doctor, but the advice came back that it was likely just a respiratory virus and to bring her in the next day if things had not improved. By 2am that night the rash had become significantly worse, and she was rushed to hospital, but, agonisingly, Paige passed away.

Common symptoms such as feeling tired, vomiting a couple of times and having a temperature can all be attributed to a simple virus, which is what makes meningococcal so difficult to recognise and in turn so dangerous. All children will inevitably have symptoms of this sort at various times throughout their childhood, which makes it even more difficult to determine. Other symptoms to look out for with meningococcal include headache, neck stiffness and tiny red and purple spots, but these are not always prevalent or evident. And when the spots come on, it is often too late, which is evidence of how quickly this disease takes hold. That is why awareness of the signs are so vitally important and early detection so key. Prompt diagnosis of meningococcal can be lifesaving.

Every year on Paige's birthday, the Paige Weatherspoon Foundation celebrates Violet Day, chosen because purple was Paige's favourite colour. Trading stalls sell all sorts of purple items, including wristbands and pens, and many local schools mark the occasion, often with a wear-something-purple day. The trading stalls are held not just on the Copper Coast. Schools, kindergartens, care groups, aged-care homes and hospitals from around the state, as far away as Port Lincoln and Roxby Downs, have all been involved in the past, holding morning teas or sausage sizzles—anything to highlight the disease and to educate people about how it is spread and its symptoms.

This disease is a severe infection that can infect anyone anywhere, but most at risk are children under five like Paige, teenagers and young adults and, of course, older people. Most cases are isolated and not related to another case or to an outbreak. Sadly, the B strain has a higher prevalence in South Australia than in other states, hence minister Wade's action on this issue. The government and the new Minister for Health and Wellbeing are fully committed to creating a targeted, localised response, which will ensure that the disease feels the maximum impact of that response.

The minister has already established a multisectoral expert working group, which has been alluded to previously. That occurred on 26 April this year. The group consists of SA Health clinicians and immunologists as well as independent experts in the field of meningococcal disease and immunisation more broadly. This working group has already started work on a set of recommendations for the optimal response to combat this disease—this strain of the disease—for the state of South Australia's betterment.

In its current review of recommendations relating to the meningococcal B vaccination, the peak national clinical advisory group has highlighted the need to optimise vaccination amongst a range of priority target groups, including young children under the age of two, Indigenous children up to five, adolescents, young adults and those who are at a higher risk of the disease due to pre-existing medical conditions.

Due to clinical concern about the greater proportion of B-strain cases in South Australia as well as increasing community concern, the expert working group will consider all options for a community vaccination program. The B strain is the last to have a vaccination available, hence the expert working group recently established by this government involving the aforementioned clinicians and immunologists, and the urgency for developing a set of recommendations as the best response to this disease.

I support the member for Mount Gambier's motion, with the amendments outlined by the member for Newland to reflect the action already taken by this government and the ongoing efforts to combat meningococcal disease, and I urge the support of all members of this house for the amendments.

Mr BROCK (Frome) (12:00): I would like to express my utter disgust at this amendment, which seeks to change the motion put forward by the member for Mount Gambier. The amendment basically is to the part establishing a committee. The amendment notes that the Minister for Health has established it. However, the third part of the member for Mount Gambier's motion calls on the Marshall Liberal government to implement a vaccination program. There are no time frames in this amendment—there are no time frames whatsoever—and I am very, very disappointed that it appears to be political and that there is not bipartisan support for a great motion by the member for Mount Gambier.

We look at our children and our grandchildren and see their lively faces, their innocence, their growing to young adults and then them achieving some direction in their adult lives. However, for many parents this scenario does not eventuate due to some illnesses that these young people contract. For many years, Australia has had various immunisation programs and there are immunisation programs that are getting better; however, at the same time, there are emerging new diseases coming to light every day.

One of these diseases is meningococcal B, which is emerging in addition to other strains of this very drastic and disastrous disease. As we are aware, these diseases are an intense bacterial infection that can cause death within hours if not treated. This situation was reflected in the speech by the member for Mount Gambier about the two children and the families that have already experienced these incidents.

All Australian children are vaccinated against the C strain through the immunisation program, but not the B strain. My information is there are five main strains of this disease in Australia and vaccines for all of them, but only the C strain is on the PBS and given free to children up to two years of age. The B strain is available from GPs but, as the Leader of the Opposition and others have indicated, it costs around $500 for the vaccination period.

When I was a child, we were immunised against polio, which at that particular time had a very devastating effect. Over the years, we have also been immunising young infants against tetanus and other diseases. It is now time to look at the same process for this new disease. Australia is now participating on a world stage and, although our hygiene controls are excellent, there is always every chance that our young children will contract a new strain of any disease.

To lose a child is every parent's nightmare. I can talk from personal experience as we lost our grandson over eight years ago by drowning at 18 months of age. Whilst every precaution was taken that day, the accident still happened. The effect on my daughter, my family and our friends is still being felt to this very day. I ask the members on the other side to think very seriously about this amendment which has no time frame on it. The motion coming from the member for Mount Gambier asked the Marshall Liberal government to implement the vaccination program now.

I ask them how they would feel seeing their child or their grandchild being held by the mother and the mother saying, 'Dad, I cannot wake the child up. The child is not responding.' That is what may happen if this vaccination program is deferred. This motion by the member for Mount Gambier is just common sense and needs to be endorsed by the Liberal government straightaway.

As the member for Hammond mentioned earlier, the Marshall Liberal government supports the previous motion of No Tobacco Day, where only policies and promotions can be undertaken. This motion by the member for Mount Gambier asks the Marshall Liberal government to implement a vaccination program and establish a committee. The amendment already says that they are going to establish a committee, but it does not give any time frames about the immunisation program. Starting an immunisation program straightaway reduces the chances of contracting this disease and will allow a child to have a life.

As has been mentioned earlier, this has already been costed at about $24½ million over four years. That is $6 million per year. What is the value of a child's life, to allow them to grow up and enjoy? What is the value of not having a parent worry about trying to wake up a deceased child? What is the value for some people out there who cannot afford to have this immunisation? A cost of $500 for four immunisations for this disease is out of the reach of a lot of people in South Australia.

In my view, the Liberal government should implement the meningococcal B vaccination program. This program would dramatically reduce the risk of a child contracting this devastating disease. This would result in prevention, increasing the opportunity for a child to have a life. If there is another death due to a vaccination program not being in place, I ask members to look at their soul and ask very seriously: if that program had been implemented straightaway, could that have saved that child? I ask members to ask themselves: if the motion by the member for Mount Gambier had been agreed to then, would the risk of that child dying have been reduced?

I ask everyone here to seriously consider the amendment put forward by the member for Newland, and to defeat that amendment and allow the motion by the member for Mount Gambier to go through unaltered and allow this program to be implemented immediately. I commend the motion from the member for Mount Gambier to the house.

Mr BELL (Mount Gambier) (12:08): I thank all members for their contribution on this very important motion. I indicate that I do not support the amendment by the member for Newland because I do not think it actually adds anything to the motion. In fact, I think it is hollow in many aspects.

First of all, it does not call on the government to do anything. It simply acknowledges work that, at face value, has been undertaken. It does not address any of the concerns highlighted by the community. There is no awareness. There could have been an amendment to strengthen aspects of awareness of meningococcal B not being on the National Immunisation Program and the fact that the state government does not offer an immunisation program for the meningococcal B strain.

As the member for Frome quite rightly pointed out, there is no time frame on the amendment by the member for Newland. There is actually no commitment to do anything. There is no commitment to implement a vaccination program for the meningococcal B strain and, of course, it does not address the cost of the vaccine, which currently sits close to $500.

I will conclude my remarks with what I started with, and that is that it is unconscionable that this is a preventable disease, that due to awareness and cost young people in South Australia are not being vaccinated, and we have the ability in this house to do something about it. However, it is not just my words or my motion: just before question time today I will table 4,544 signatures on a petition, as follows:

Your petitioners…request that your honourable house will call on the state government to fund the B strain vaccination of meningococcal for South Australian children to prevent any further deaths from this preventable disease.

I will finish with part of a statement released by the heartbroken family of Jordan Braddock from Mount Gambier where they describe the heartache of losing their beloved son:

Jordan was cruelly snatched away from his family. It took just two hours for this insipid disease to ravage his little body—

a family spokesman said.

His bereft and grieving parents are still coming to terms with his sudden loss. You always hear the horror stories, but you never think this can happen to you. But it can. And it does. And it did.

The spokesman said, 'If only Jordan's parents had known there was a vaccine available to immunise against this deadly disease.' With that, I commend the original motion to the house.

The house divided on the amendment:

Ayes 23

Noes 21

Majority 2

AYES
Basham, D.K.B. Chapman, V.A. Cowdrey, M.J.
Cregan, D. Duluk, S. Ellis, F.J.
Habib, C. Harvey, R.M. (teller) Knoll, S.K.
Luethen, P. Marshall, S.S. McBride, N.
Murray, S. Patterson, S.J.R. Pederick, A.S.
Pisoni, D.G. Sanderson, R. Speirs, D.J.
Teague, J.B. Treloar, P.A. van Holst Pellekaan, D.C.
Whetstone, T.J. Wingard, C.L.
NOES
Bedford, F.E. Bell, T.S. Bettison, Z.L.
Bignell, L.W.K. Boyer, B.I. Brock, G.G.
Brown, M.E. (teller) Close, S.E. Cook, N.F.
Hildyard, K.A. Hughes, E.J. Koutsantonis, A.
Malinauskas, P. Mullighan, S.C. Odenwalder, L.K.
Piccolo, A. Picton, C.J. Rau, J.R.
Stinson, J.M. Weatherill, J.W. Wortley, D.

Amendment thus carried; motion as amended carried.

PARLIAMENTARY BUSINESS
MEMBERS
GET INVOLVED
ABOUT PARLIAMENT
VISIT
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY
CONTACT