Northland child immunisation rates on the slide

The region at the heart of a current measles outbreak has seen the biggest slide in child vaccination rates in in the country. The number of Northland children fully immunised at 24 months of age has dropped about four percent to just 62.3 percent in the past three months with the region lagging way behind other areas. That's despite an overall improvement nationwide. Health target data released today shows 82 percent of two-year-olds have had all their vaccinations up from 76.5 percent last year. There's currently four confirmed measles cases in Northland and one unrelated case in Queenstown. Health Minister Simeon Brown says there's a pop up vaccination clinic operating in Northland and the government's partnered with Hauora Maori organisations to raise immunisation rates. Childhood vacinations also dropped in Whanganui, Nelson Marlborough and Canterbury. Maori paediatrician and chairperson of the National Immunisation Taskforce Dr Owen Sinclair spoke to Lisa Owen.