Immunisation rates in Murrumbidgee Local Health District are higher than the state average, as new figures suggest tougher "no jab no pay" rules are boosting levels.
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The latest figures, from June, show that for non-Aboriginal children aged 12 to 15 months, the immunisation rate in MLHD was 95.7 per cent, compared to the statewide average of 93.8.
In Aboriginal children the rate was even higher at 96.3 per cent, compared to the NSW level of 94.3.
In 2018-19, under the "no jab, no pay" plan, the government notified the families of about 350,000 children that they did not meet the immunisation requirements for Family Tax Benefit Part A and were at risk of having their fortnightly payment reduced by $29.
The notifications led to almost 174,000 children being fully immunised, according to federal social services minister Anne Ruston.
The system was first introduced in 2016 and was followed by a tightening of the rules in 2018.
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Families who do not meet the immunisation requirements for their child are notified and given a 63-day grace period.
If they fail to immunise their child within the grace period their FTB payments are reduced.
MLHD's director of public health Tracey Oakman said it was hard to say definitively how much of an impact the "no jab, no pay" scheme had on the district's rates, which are usually among the state's highest.
Mrs Oakman said MLHD's results have been steadily improving in recent years.
"We have also made other efforts to try to improve the rates," she said.
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