Vaccine refusers to miss out on $2000 family payments PRIME Minister Kevin Rudd has promised to strip parents who refuse to vaccinate their children of family payments worth more than $2000. In a get-tough message to "vaccine refusers" who ignore advice to immunise children against life-threatening diseases such as chickenpox, polio and whooping cough, Mr Rudd will pledge today that if re-elected he will deny them Family Tax Benefit A end-of-year supplements. The payments are worth $726 per child and are paid when children are one, two and five years of age, when children are fully immunised in accordance with the official schedule of vaccines. In total, the family payments are worth over $2000 per child. The announcement follows The Sunday Telegraph and The Daily Telegraph's No Jab, No Play campaign, which called for the federal and state governments to take action against parents who failed to immunise children. Our campaign asked the federal government to restrict childcare rebates for unvaccinated children, and for the state government to allow childcare centres to ban unvaccinated kids if they wished. The federal government has refused to take any action until now, while Premier Barry O'Farrell has introduced laws that require parents to produce a full vaccination record or a conscientious objection form before enrolling their children in childcare. "The medical science is clear," Mr Rudd said. The best way to protect babies and children from diseases like whooping cough is to be fully vaccinated. I have been very concerned that in recent years there have actually been whooping cough epidemics in some areas. Babies can and do die if they contract this horrible disease. I want these unnecessary tragedies to stop. Senior government sources said the Prime Minister would in future consider restricting access to childcare rebates, but would announce the Family Tax Benefit A supplement promise as a first step. KEVIN Rudd's support of our campaign No Jab, No Play campaign is welcomed but given he is unlikely to be prime minister in a few weeks time it's a little too late. We want the government to deny the 50 per cent childcare rebate to all parents who deny lifesaving vaccines to their children. Tony Abbott, it's up to you - vaccine refusers must be penalised.