Whooping cough vaccines will be made free to all Victorian expectant parents once again, the state government says.
Disease rates have jumped by more than 50 per cent in the last year with children under one the most affected by the increased rates.
Premier Daniel Andrews met with new parents at Melbourne’s Royal Women’s Hospital on Sunday to announce the program which will provide free vaccines for women in their third trimester of pregnancy and parents of babies up to six months old.
“Parents will get the free whooping cough shots to protect them from giving to their children, unknowingly, what can be a deadly virus,” he told reporters.
“This will save lives.”
A tender process will be carried out to source the vaccine, which is currently in a worldwide shortage.
Health Minister Jill Hennessy said more than 80,000 Victorians would be vaccinated under the program.
She said the government was also working to implement its No Jab No Play policy barring unvaccinated children from attending day care facilities.
The program had previously been in place but was removed by the Liberal government in 2012.
It will cost the government $8.4 million over four years and will be paid for through the scrapping of the Building Code and Construction Code Compliance Unit.
AAP