Some GPs have much lower vaccination rates among their adult patients than other GPs in the same area. The government should step in to boost the protection of vulnerable Australians.
A new Grattan Institute report reveals that only about 40 per cent of the older patients of some GPs are vaccinated for flu, but for other GPs the rate is about 90 per cent.
For shingles, the gap is even bigger: from only about 22 per cent up to about 85 per cent.
For COVID, the bottom 5 per cent of GPs – about 1,600 GPs – have only 16 per cent of their patients aged 65 and older up to date with their vaccinations. That is less than a third of the average GP COVID vaccination rate across Australia of 51 per cent.
The report, Patchy protection: How to boost GPs’ patient vaccination rates, finds that even within neighbourhoods, GP patient vaccination rates vary enormously.
In Bankstown in south-western Sydney, there is a seven-fold difference in COVID vaccination rates and an 18-fold difference for pneumococcal vaccination.
In Wyndham on the western outskirts of Melbourne, there is a three-fold difference in COVID rates and a 10-fold difference in pneumococcal rates.
On the northern Gold Coast, the bottom quarter of GPs have only 27 per cent of their older patients up to date with their COVID vaccinations, whereas for the top quarter of GPs it’s 59 per cent.
GPs’ patient vaccination rates in a sample of areas across Australia
Average patient vaccination rates by GPs (among eligible patients)
| State | Area | Vaccine | Quarter of GPs with the lowest rates | Quarter of GPs with the highest rates |
| NSW | Fairfield | Flu | 29% | 73% |
| NSW | Fairfield | COVID | 2% | 38% |
| NSW | Fairfield | Shingles | 14% | 62% |
| NSW | Fairfield | Pneumococcal | 4% | 44% |
| NSW | Richmond Valley – Coastal | Flu | 47% | 79% |
| NSW | Richmond Valley – Coastal | COVID | 33% | 63% |
| NSW | Richmond Valley – Coastal | Shingles | 38% | 77% |
| NSW | Richmond Valley – Coastal | Pneumococcal | 9% | 61% |
| Vic | Whittlesea – Wallan | Flu | 45% | 78% |
| Vic | Whittlesea – Wallan | COVID | 11% | 55% |
| Vic | Whittlesea – Wallan | Shingles | 17% | 66% |
| Vic | Whittlesea – Wallan | Pneumococcal | 5% | 57% |
| Vic | Wodonga – Alpine | Flu | 64% | 81% |
| Vic | Wodonga – Alpine | COVID | 45% | 64% |
| Vic | Wodonga – Alpine | Shingles | 44% | 73% |
| Vic | Wodonga – Alpine | Pneumococcal | 9% | 70% |
| Qld | Gold Coast – North | Flu | 54% | 82% |
| Qld | Gold Coast – North | COVID | 27% | 59% |
| Qld | Gold Coast – North | Shingles | 47% | 76% |
| Qld | Gold Coast – North | Pneumococcal | 15% | 61% |
| SA | Charles Sturt | Flu | 52% | 82% |
| SA | Charles Sturt | COVID | 24% | 61% |
| SA | Charles Sturt | Shingles | 32% | 72% |
| SA | Charles Sturt | Pneumococcal | 15% | 68% |
| WA | Stirling | Flu | 57% | 84% |
| WA | Stirling | COVID | 25% | 64% |
| WA | Stirling | Shingles | 41% | 74% |
| WA | Stirling | Pneumococcal | 19% | 63% |
| Tas | Hobart – North East | Flu | 71% | 90% |
| Tas | Hobart – North East | COVID | 58% | 83% |
| Tas | Hobart – North East | Shingles | 40% | 79% |
| Tas | Hobart – North East | Pneumococcal | 29% | 76% |
| NT | Darwin Suburbs | Flu | 53% | 80% |
| NT | Darwin Suburbs | COVID | 26% | 55% |
| ACT | Belconnen | Flu | 61% | 89% |
| ACT | Belconnen | COVID | 50% | 80% |
| ACT | Belconnen | Shingles | 50% | 85% |
| ACT | Belconnen | Pneumococcal | 14% | 78% |
Source: Grattan Institute analysis of ABS PLIDA (2024).
GPs with lower vaccination rates typically have more patients who are disadvantaged and struggle with English, but they get less funding because they charge their patients lower fees.
‘The government needs to level the playing field, giving much more support to GPs whose patients face higher barriers to vaccination,’ says Grattan Institute Health Program Director and report lead author Peter Breadon.
The report calls for a three-pronged national strategy to help GPs do better:
- The federal government should overhaul the way general practice is funded, to provide more money to GPs in poorer areas with more disadvantaged patients. This would enable those GPs to spend more time with patients to explain and promote vaccination.
- The 31 Primary Health Networks around Australia should give GPs better data, so GPs can easily see how their vaccination rates compare to other clinics in their area that have similar patients.
- And Primary Health Networks should give GPs with low vaccination rates the extra help they need. That might include new nursing staff to vaccinate patients, extra training, running vaccination drives in GP clinics, or helping patients book a jab at their pharmacy.
‘Australia urgently needs to lift its vaccination game,’ Mr Breadon says.
‘Our report shows that the system is failing to give every Australian good access to potentially life-saving preventive healthcare.’