(Photo: SBRC)
The South Burnett Regional Council will continue to offer an immunisation program for children, even though immunisation is not its responsibility.
At Wednesday’s Council meeting, Councillors heard an existing School Based Immunisation Agreement with Queensland Health will expire at the end of this year.
Officers recommended Council directly employ the current immunisation nurses on a casual basis rather than continue to contract them from a Brisbane-based nursing company, and ask Queensland Health for assistance in enlisting further nurses.
Officers also recommended Queensland Health be asked to confirm its reimbursement arrangements before Council signed any new agreement.
The recommendations provoked lively debate in Council.
Cr Ros Heit opened the debate by suggesting, as an amendment, that Council refuse to sign any new agreement with Queensland Health unless the program was cost-positive or at least cost-neutral.
“I think immunisation is very important for our community’s health, but I don’t see why our ratepayers should be expected to pay for something the State Government should be doing,” Cr Heit said.
Cr Barry Green agreed immunisation was really a State Government responsibility.
“But in all good conscience, it’s just too important for our community’s health to let it drop,” he said.
Cr Kathy Duff said she thought immunisation was a vital service, so she couldn’t support the amendment if it meant Council might cut the program altogether.
Cr Keith Campbell asked what the situation was at the moment.
Mayor Wayne Kratzmann said the program was effectively cost-neutral, but warned it might wind up costing “a few thousand each year” if Queensland Health didn’t cover the full cost.
However he thought the issue was too important to risk bluffing.
“What would we do if Queensland Health said no?”
Cr Damien Tessmann said he found himself straddling a barbed wire fence on the issue.
“I agree with Cr Heit’s position and I’m certainly not against reminding the State Government we’re doing a job they should be doing,” Cr Tessmann said.
“On the other hand, I agree that immunisation is important and I also think Council does it more effectively than Queensland Health. If we stopped doing it, I think immunisation rates would drop.”
Cr Deb Palmer said she hoped Councillors would keep in mind that children are everyone’s future and it was everyone’s responsibility to protect them.
In the end, Cr Heit’s amendment was lost 5-2 and the original recommendations passed by the same margin.
