Atagi’s strict Covid restrictions preventing ‘desperate’ parents from vaccinating their children, expert says

Labor MP and infectious disease specialist Dr Michelle Ananda-Rajah has criticised Australia’s immunisation experts for keeping “overly restrictive” rules on access to coronavirus vaccines, urging the government to expand eligibility for children and young people in a bid to address long Covid.

The Melbourne doctor called on the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (Atagi) to provide more transparency on its decision to not recommend fourth shots for people under 30 and to not allow under-fives to receive Covid vaccines. She said many parents were “desperate” to have their children vaccinated.

“We don’t have a lot in our armoury against long Covid except vaccination … there’s not much else,” Ananda-Rajah told Guardian Australia.

“I am frustrated, frankly, that we have overly restrictive criteria and complicated criteria around vaccine eligibility.”

Ananda-Rajah was a doctor at the Alfred hospital and a prominent critic of the former Coalition government’s pandemic response before winning the seat of Higgins at the May election. She had been criticised for questioning the efficacy of the AstraZeneca vaccine in 2021, and co-founded the Healthcare Workers Australia group, which advocated for better Covid protection for medical staff.

Alongside several other trained doctors, she is a member of the parliament’s inquiry into “long Covid”, or chronic symptoms enduring months past an initial infection. Following a hearing with medical staff, Ananda-Rajah tweeted this week that doctors wanted more booster shots, but “the brakes remain locked thanks to overly restrictive criteria by Atagi.”

Current Atagi recommendations mean people 30 and over are eligible for a second Covid booster, or fourth shot; those 16 and over can get a booster, or third shot; children aged five to 15 are eligible for two shots, and can only get a booster if they have serious health issues; while infants under five are only eligible for vaccination if they have serious health problems.

Ananda-Rajah said current rules had upset those ineligible for extra vaccinations, noting countries like the United States offered primary doses for children as young as six months and boosters for all aged over five.

“I’m echoing and relaying the frustrations I’ve heard from my constituents crying out for vaccines for their children, and colleagues in the health profession who are desperate for booster shots,” she said.

“I’ve had constituents distraught over this, parents desperate to get their children vaccinated … I can’t answer the question why we don’t offer vaccines for kids here.”

Long Covid ‘striking people at the prime of their lives’

Ananda-Rajah said she held fears for the future impact of long Covid. In a submission to the inquiry, the Kirby Institute’s Prof Raina Macintyre estimated nearly all Australians would have experienced at least one Covid infection by August 2023, and that 1 million people could experience long Covid symptoms by October 2023.

Her submission warned Australia “faces a growing burden of chronic disease” from long Covid, recommending the government consider vaccinating children from ages zero to four, and expanding booster access.

Dr Zinta Harrington, head of Liverpool Hospital’s respiratory department, told the long Covid inquiry last week in response to questions from Ananda-Rajah that expanding boosters for younger medical staff would be “extremely helpful”. Dr Tuan-Anh Nguyen, head of Campbelltown Hospital’s rehabilitation medicine department, also backed expanding eligibility.

Ananda-Rajah said Atagi’s vaccine recommendations should take long Covid, and its potential knock-on effects for society, into consideration.

“Long Covid is striking people at the prime of their lives, ripping them out of their lives and taking them out of the workforce,” she said.

She said vaccine eligibility had been set with a view to reducing death and illness, but “one they haven’t taken into account is the productivity gains that come from vaccination”.

Ananda-Rajah said Australia should be looking to offer booster shots to all children aged five and over, and to extend primary doses to those aged under five .

She also said Atagi’s deliberations on vaccine eligibility should be made public, citing the example of the US Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices.

“This isn’t rocket science. We know vaccines reduce risk. I want to align vaccine recommendations at minimum with the US,” she said.

“We need to act. We can’t sit on our hands and say we need more data and research, it’s not good enough, while this is affecting millions of people, to wait for that research. I want more pragmatism to enter our policy making.”

In a statement, the health minister, Mark Butler, backed Atagi’s recommendations, which he said were based on international and local evidence, but flagged potential changes early in the new year.

“The Australian government has accepted advice from the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (Atagi) that at this point there is no need for an additional dose of the Covid-19 vaccine beyond those already recommended,” he said.

“Atagi have said that they anticipate new booster recommendations in early 2023 in preparation for winter, which is obviously going to be an important part of our preparation strategy.”

Butler added that “having all the recommended vaccines for your circumstances remains one of the best ways to protect yourself from becoming very sick or dying from the disease.”

Atagi was approached for comment.