Essential vaccines: performance report 2023–24

This report provides an assessment of state and territory performance against the performance benchmarks outlined in the Essential Vaccines Schedule of the Federation Funding Agreement – Health (EVS), for the seventh year of the agreement, covering the assessment period 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024. For the first time in this report, the assessments for benchmarks 1, 2, 3 and 4 account for statistical uncertainties and data variability, determining whether a jurisdiction meets the national target or baseline by comparing vaccination coverage rates with 95% variability bands. Since the assessment method differs from those used in previous reports, the data presented in this report are not directly comparable to earlier results.

The EVS is an agreement between the Commonwealth of Australia and the states and territories, which aims to “support the cost-effective and efficient delivery of the National Immunisation Program to protect the Australian public from the spread of vaccine preventable diseases”.

The performance benchmarks assessed in this report are:

1. maintained or increased vaccination coverage rates for 60–<63-month-olds relative to the baseline;
2. maintained or increased vaccination coverage rates for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in at least two of the following three age cohorts: 12–<15 months; 24–<27 months; and 60–<63 months, relative to the baseline;
3. an increase in the vaccination coverage rate for both adolescent boys and adolescent girls for HPV, relative to the baseline;
4. an increase in vaccination coverage rates for 60–<63-month-olds in four of the ten lowest vaccination coverage SA3 geographical areas in each jurisdiction, relative to the baseline; and
5. an annual decrease in the wastage and leakage rate for agreed vaccines, relative to the baseline.

A performance milestone of “provision of seasonal influenza vaccination rollout plan” is also specified in the Agreement. For the seventh year of the agreement, all states and territories achieved this milestone. 

Three jurisdictions (South Australia, Tasmania and Australian Capital Territory) met 5 of the 5 benchmarks assessed in this report. Four jurisdictions (New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland and Western Australia) met 4 of the 5 benchmarks assessed in this report.

Note: A list of the EVS benchmarks and their detailed specifications is in Appendix A.