Ready for some good news?
The organisation formerly known as the Australian Vaccination Network – which peddles dangerous and misleading anti-vaccination rhetoric to parents and expectant parents – has been officially banned from fundraising for charitable purposes.
The Australian Vaccination-Skeptics Network Incorporated group was forced to surrender its ‘Authority to Fundraise’ after a state government investigation into its anti-vaccination activities.
The NSW Office of Liquor, Gaming and Racing first wrote a letter to the AVSNI, asking that they make a case for why their authority to fundraise should not be revoked – and when this requirement was not met, the association surrendered its authority.
And it’s about time.
Under the Charitable Fundraising Act, an organisation can only fundraise for charitable purposes if their cause is in the public interest.
While investigating the AVSNI, the OLGR sourced expert medical advice regarding information on the anti-vaccination group’s website regarding the risks and benefits of vaccination. The experts found that the group’s anti-vaccination advocacy held the potential for great misinformation and could influence the important health decisions made by parents, which could in turn lead to adverse public health consequences.
The group has long been criticised by scientists and doctors for claiming that vaccines cause autism and that vaccination is a “personal choice”. This is despite the fact that babies who are too young to be vaccinated rely on herd immunity, as do children and adults with compromised immune systems.