Child vaccination rates fall to five-year low amid distrust of trained professionals

Vaccination rates continue to fall among children across all major milestones, with the number of fully vaccinated babies aged 12 months falling by nearly four percent from 2020 to 2025.

Complete coverage rates for two-year-olds fell from 92 percent in 2020 to less than 90 percent last year, according to 2025 data from the National Center for Immunization Research and Surveillance.

Children are being vaccinated on time at lower rates than before the pandemic, with five-year-old rates also dropping from 94 percent to 92 percent during this time period.

According to historical data from the Australian Government Department of Health, full insurance rates among one- and two-year-olds have tended to fluctuate around the low 90 per cent dating back to the early 2000s; These rates indicate a continuing struggle to reach herd immunity levels of 95 percent.

Federal Health Minister Mark Butler is concerned that rates among young children continue to fall but says the trend is worldwide, pointing to online misinformation and the lingering effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Mr Butler said on Wednesday: “There is a level of hesitancy, a level of fatigue that follows the pandemic, and frankly misinformation and disinformation about vaccines is also running rampant on the internet.”

The minister said information campaigns on vaccinations for children needed to be reviewed and that advertising was currently aimed at countering misinformation and people “sitting on the fence”.

“But I said it was now time for us to take a look at the research and see if different campaigns might be needed in the future because this is turning out to be quite a structural decline,” Mr. Butler said.

Maryke Steffens leads the National Immunization Analyzes project at the National Center for Immunization Research and Surveillance.

“Since around 2020, when we started the Covid-19 pandemic, there has been a tendency for vaccine coverage to decrease slightly from year to year across all these age groups,” Dr Steffens said.

“It’s not a huge drop every year, but it’s been dropping steadily every year, which is what’s concerning,” he told NewsWire.

Measles and whooping cough infections, which Dr Steffens sees as the “canary in the coal mine”, are on the rise across the country.

“If rates continue to drop, you’ll start to see increases in other diseases like Diphtheria and polio, who would have thought we’d get to this point. I think that’s a real concern.”

Although polio was officially eliminated in 2000 and the last locally acquired case was in 1972, diphtheria has never been completely eliminated in Australia.

The 2025 National Immunization Analyzes project found that the three most common barriers to vaccination are negative beliefs about vaccine safety, lack of trust in healthcare providers, and parents not prioritizing vaccination.

“Unfortunately, the barrier that has increased the most this year is that parents do not trust the information they receive from their doctor or immunization nurse about vaccinations,” Dr Steffens said.

Practical hurdles, such as having to pay for a GP visit and finding time for appointments, are also common.

“Yes, there are declines in parental confidence in vaccines, but I think we also need to pay attention to the fact that some parents tell us that it is difficult to get their children vaccinated,” he said.

“Parents have informed us that it can be difficult to find a GP who does bulk billing, especially in regional areas.”

The majority of Australians know that vaccines are important and that vaccinating their children is the best way to protect them.

“Parenting can be really challenging and it can be really difficult to prioritize children’s vaccinations when you have so much going on in your life,” Dr Steffens said.

“But it’s one of the best ways to keep your child healthy and worth prioritizing.”

But parents have reported discomfort with vaccines, especially after the U.S. Centers for Disease Control reduced the recommended number of vaccines for children from 17 to 11.

“To hear these things coming from the US, to hear that the CDC is no longer giving a very definitive message about vaccines and autism, that vaccines do not cause autism – that distresses some parents,” Dr Steffens said.

“(And) they’re worried about getting their kids vaccinated because they’re getting mixed messages and a lot of misinformation from abroad here.”

UNSW School of Population Health social scientist Holly Seale says scare campaigns have not boosted vaccination rates. Campaigns like that of the NSW state government have worked best; Simple messages about staying vaccinated and healthy to spend more time with grandparents or going on vacation.

“We know that for some people, unfortunately, death from these vaccine-preventable diseases still occurs, but for the most part, for children, contracting these diseases means taking time off from school, spending time away from the things they enjoy, such as chatting with friends,” Professor Seale said.

“Getting vaccinated means reducing our risk of missing out on life.”

The mother of two, a health professor, empathizes with time-poor parents.

“I just went and got my covid and flu vaccines at the same time; convenience; let’s make this as easy as possible for everyone.

“It’s not easy to find time for people with busy lives and responsibilities. Let’s make it easier.”

Professor Seale said it was also a big help that pharmacies were now a place to collect vaccines and speak to another trained healthcare professional.

“Unfortunately, the misinformation we’ve seen during Covid can have an impact. And it’s certainly important that we don’t ignore that,” he said.

“People have questions, and you need to bring those questions to your doctor, because friends and family can share their stories, but sometimes we get it wrong.

“Ultimately having a good conversation with a pharmacist or GP really helps clear up any misunderstandings you may have.”