Marielle Smith (SA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Any parent in Australia will know how dangerous and scary RSV can be. It's the leading cause of hospitalisation for infants in Australia. There is absolutely nothing worse than bringing your precious newborn child home, only to have to rush back to hospital weeks or months later because they are so unwell, unable to feed or struggling to breathe. For many Australian families, this experience is all too familiar. I know that when my son had RSV it was one of the scariest moments of motherhood for me. RSV puts 12,000 infants in hospital every year, and nearly a quarter of those babies need intensive care. It's the leading reason young children under five are hospitalised each year.

That's why I am extraordinarily proud of our government's commitment of $174 million into the world's most comprehensive RSV vaccination and protection program for infants. Pregnant women will have access free of charge to a vaccine from the third trimester. It is expected to prevent some 10,000 hospitalisations every year. That's 10,000 Australian families who won't have to go through the trauma and anxiety of watching their babies, watching their little ones, struggle to breathe and struggle with RSV—not to mention the impact it will have on our hospital system, which, during peak season in winter, is often overburdened by the cases of RSV. Without this initiative, families would need to pay $300 for this vaccine. In a cost-of-living pressured environment, that is something that many families simply cannot afford.

This is an extraordinary announcement, one which will keep our littlest Australians out of hospital, one which will protect Australian families from going through that pain and anxiousness when their little one has RSV. It's a tremendous announcement and I commend the health minister for his efforts.