Health Australia Party (HAP): Anti-Vaccination

Background

In October 2015 Isaac Golden founded the Health Australia Party (HAP) by taking over and renaming an existing political party, the Natural Medicine Party (NMP). The founder of NMP, Andrew Patterson, became HAP's NSW State President, the Registered Officer (AEC), and ran as a NSW senate candidate in the 2016 federal election.

Patterson was a bad look for a party desperate to gain legitimacy for natural health and to rid itself of the anti-vaccination label. His social media feeds were full of crank conspiracies and rabidly anti-vaccination views whilst other HAP candidates looked squeaky clean and mostly sensible, in comparison. During the 2016 federal election campaign HAP received some negative media attention, including:

Election 2016: Fringe-dwellers vie for their place in the Senate (Sydney Morning Herald, 26 June);
Election 2016: Revamped Health Australia Party broadens policies, but raises ire of AMA (ABC News, 28 June);
Federal election 2016: Daily Telegraph exposes the kooks, nuts and just out there voter grabbers (Daily Telegraph, 30 June)

In the middle of an election campaign, HAP had no choice but to respond.

Excerpt from HAP Media Release 22-06-16 President replies to AMA [pdf], by Professor Kerry Bone, President Health Australia Party:

Bone went on the say that the AMA position smacks of an overreaction. ''They are trying to paint the Health Australia Party as an irrelevant lunatic fringe movement in order to stifle healthy debate.''

Excerpts from Why is there a need for the Health Australia Party (HAP)? by Professor Kerry Bone, 27 June 2016:

''…the HAP is being painted as a group of lunatic, anti-science extremists who have dangerous policies.''
''I have always supported vaccination where it can be safely and effectively used, and that is also the HAP's policy.''

Excerpt from ABC News article, updated 28 June 2016:

Mr Woodforth rejected the suggestion HAP is anti-vaccine.
He said the reason the party was seen as anti-vaccine was because it did not support the "no jab, no pay" or "no jab, no play" policies.
''The Health Party believes in safe and effective immunisation, always has. The problem we've got is there's no adverse reactions register,'' he said.
He believed people were not given enough warnings before vaccination, which he said could lead to severe, even permanent health conditions.

HAP failed to win a senate seat and it ceremoniously dumped Patterson and his wife, HAP's National Secretary, Judy Cooke, from the party immediately after the election. Please refer to Reasonable Hank post Leaked email shows Health Australia Party suffering post-election implosion.

Anti-Vaccination

Health Australia Party doesn't have a specific policy addressing vaccination but it does reject being labelled "anti-vaccination". HAP released an Official Statement ''No Jab No Pay/Play Legislation, dated 2 April 2016, excerpts follow:

''Monitoring and reportage of adverse reactions is completely inadequate.''
''There is a lack of transparency around the dealings of pharmaceutical companies which appear to be largely exempt from Freedom of Information requests…''
''The selective and biased nature of some media activity is also a major concern, and needs to be addressed.''
''…and policy should reflect the very best in independent research, and with respect to established medical ethics such as the notion of 'informed consent'''.

A mealy-mouthed and disingenuous attempt to avoid the anti-vaccination label, if ever I saw one. The big-bad-evil-big-pharma controlling big-bad-evil-media gambit, along with a favourite anti-vaccination gambit of "informed consent".

In my opinion, if Health Australia Party wishes to avoid the anti-vaccination label, it needs to be specific in its views on vaccination. Which vaccinations would it recommend today? And why/why not? How can potential voters be assured that HAP will promote/support responsible public health policy in the event it ever wins a senate seat, when so many of its executive, advisory board, and senate candidates hold outrageous, ridiculous, and potentially dangerous views on vaccination?
Until HAP address these questions adequately, the anti-vaccination label is both fitting and richly deserved.

Please note, Isaac Golden is not featured below because it is entirely obvious that this global expert on homeoprophylaxis who specialises in the epidemic of vaccine damaged children, is anti-vaccination.

Due to the amount of information presented, the following Health Australia Party officials are featured on separate pages:
Jason Woodforth
Ed Stattmann
Catherine Chan

Andrew Patterson

Refer to page Health Australia Party: Senate Candidates (2016), section New South Wales - Andrew Patterson.

Cathy Nolan

Health Australia Party:
Current: QLD State Secretary

General:
President, Australian Register of Homoeopaths (AROH)

description:
Nolan shares an anti-vaccination article, promoting the debunked vaccine-autism link.

shared material:
[title] 22 Medical studies shows that vaccines cause Autism

[content] Concerns regarding vaccinations continue to increase exponentially in light of all of the information and documentation that has surfaced over the past…

description:
Nolan likes an anti-vaccination article by NVIC.

Nolan [quote]:
''FYI!''

linked material:
[title] Merck Lawsuit Reignites Vaccine Safety Concerns - NVIC Newsletter

[content] Vaccines news, alerts and commentaries from the National Vaccine Information Center - Barbara Loe Fisher, Theresa K. Wrangham and Dawn Richardson

[source] National Vaccine Information Center (NVIC)

Leanne Paff

Health Australia Party:
Previous: 2016 senate candidate (NSW)

General:
Provisional psychologist; naturopath; homeopath; counsellor

	description: Paff shares an anti-vaccination post. Paff [quote]: ''A must watch… I have been suspicious of under reporting side effects from vaccinations for years… Not something we see in mainstream media.'' shared material: [title] Vaccine Controversy [content] Protesters insists that the CDC is not telling the truth about vaccines and autism. So is there any truth to their claims? Ben Swann sets the facts straight in this Reality Check you won't see anywhere else. [source] Ben Swann
	description: Paff shares an anti-vaccination post. shared material: [title] THE WAR ON HEALTH AND DEMOCRACY [content] People must understand that the no Jab policy is only the beginning & we now have, not only a war against health freedoms… [source] The Crazz Files
	description: Paff shares a link to an anti-vaccination video by antivax activist, Suzanne Humphries. shared material: [title] Suzanne Humphries on Vaccines [content] Dr Suzanne Humphries, a practicing nephrologist (kidney physician) says the vaccine industry isn't…
	description: Paff shares a link to an anti-vaccination post. shared material: [title] Mary Holland UN Speach [sic] - Vaccination Policies and Human Rights [content] What do you think? - Please Share 26 Apr 2016 UN Vaccination Policies and Human Rights - Mary Holland 'Are you alive? Are you awake? Are you a thinking person… [source] Man Made Epidemic

Maggie Sands

Health Australia Party:
Current: Advisory Board member (naturopathy and remedial medicines) commenced March 2015

General:
naturopathy, herbal medicine
Australian Traditional Medicine Society (ATMS): Director (from 1987); Life Member (from 1999); past President (2013), Vice-President (1999-2006, 2009-2011), Treasurer (2012)
Founder & Principal of School of Integrated body Therapy

Mocking Title

description:
Sands publishes an anti-vaccination comment on a Facebook post.

Sands [quote]:
''Read this big pharma taking us over via vaccines''

Original post:
[content] Dear Legislator: My name is Tetyana Obukhanych. I hold a PhD in Immunology. I am writing this letter in the hope that it will correct several common misperceptions about vaccines in order to help you formulate a fair and balanced understanding that is supported by accepted vaccine theory and new scientific findings.

[source] Thinking Moms' Revolution

Andrew Hicks

Health Australia Party:
Current: Party Agent; Victorian State Secretary

''On a personal note, I have decided not to vaccinate my son due to family history of auto-immune
disease, comprehensive research (hundreds of hours) and approach to health.
Vaccination is a very tunnel vision approach to health and not the most effective.
Given my family history, I am sure that my son would have negative side effects (which are quite common)
and potentially auto-immune diseases and/or chronic disease which are both increasing at alarming rates.''

Hicks, A 2015, 'No Jab No Play Proposed Legislation' [submission], Parliament of Victoria, 27 September, viewed 19 November 2016, <submission to SARC, Andrew Hicks>

Judy Jacka

Health Australia Party:
Current: member HAP Advisory Board (Naturopathy)

General:
Made an Honorary Fellow of Western Sydney University, 9 April 2016.
Vice-Chairperson, The Jacka Foundation of Natural Therapies.
Awarded Life Membership of Australian National Therapists Association in 1996.
Principal of the Southern School of Natural Therapies 1974 to 1985, chairperson until 1996.
Author of numerous books about natural health.

Excerpts from 'A-Z of Natural Therapies', by Judy Jacka
	description: Excerpt from Jacka's book Jacka: ''I have never known complications occur in a case of measles where a few natural remedies were given from the beginning of the appearance of the rash. Natural therapists are opposed to vaccination for measles because of the research undertaken by medical scientists which indicates the possible harm and general lack of usefulness of vaccination.''
	Jacka: [title] Whooping Cough ''In spite of immunisation, I have treated many immunised children for whooping cough over the last fifteen years. Epidemics appear to go in cycles of seven years. The medical explanation for this is that, due to the virus changing its protein coat every seven years or so, the previous batches of prepared sera are then no longer suitable. Natural therapists do not like mass immunisation, and we refer our clients to the medical literature which questions its efficacy. Several very eminent scientists have condemned immunisation programs outright.''
	Jacka: ''Natural therapists are often asked about whether women of child-bearing age whould have rubella immunisation. Our approach to possible foetal malformation resulting from rubella infection is to make women aware that any virus can severely affect the foetus in the absence of good immunity. We are concerned that all women should protect themselves from viral attack by supplementing their diet during pregnancy and even before with adequate amounts of vitamin C.'' ''More specifically, natural therapists point to the findings of Dr Beverley Allen who carried out a research project involving immunisation of several hundred army recruits with rubella. They were then tested for antibody levels, and exposed to rubella. A significant proportion manifested the disease despite apparently having the antibodies! She asked the question: What if these had been pregnant women? Unfortunately, the media rarely report those cases of rubella, polio, whooping cough, and other infectious diseases which manifest despite immunisation. In addition natural therapists are concerned about the long term effect of viruses injected into the body with respect to chronic disease such as arthritis and cancer.''
Source: Jacka, J 2004, A-Z of Natural Therapies, Indus Publishing Company, New Delhi, India.

Official HAP Facebook group

Health Australia Party:
Administrators of the official Facebook group of the Health Australia Party.
Note: administrators Andrew Hicks and Jason Woodforth have been featured separately.

The table below only features a single post from each administrator to simply demonstrate that they are anti-vaccination.

	Bec Bridson Bridson shares an anti-vaccination post. shared material: [title] Something is wrong! [content] 1960 - 3% pediatric chronic illness 1970 - 6% pediatric chronic illness 1994 - 12% pediatric chronic illness 2006 - 26% pediatric chronic illness 2011 - 50% (2 in 4) children have a chronic illness: asthma, diabetes, learning problems, food allergies, ADHD, depression, autism, obesity, seizures SIDS Rates - #29 out of 33 countries [source] Uniting Healthcare Professionals Against Mandatory Vaccinations
	Ewen Richards Richards shares an anti-vaccination post. shared post: [content] Neurotoxin Nation: Melting Our Brains For Profit, According to Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. (Son of John F. Kennedy) and me David Lightman posted in comments (updatin… linked material: [title] Vaccines, government & Big Pharma's dirty… [content] Editors note: This column by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was rejected for publication by major newspapers. Mr. Kennedy published it in USA Today as a paid advertisement. WND posts it here in full. I am pro-vaccine. I had all of my six children vaccinated. I believe that vaccines save millions of lives. So… [source] WND
	Kathryn Condor Condor publishes an anti-vaccination post to Vaccination Information Network (VINE) Condor [quote]: ''The deadly impossibility of herd immunity through vaccination, by Dr Russell Blaylock.'' ''Dr.Blaylock is a nationally recognized, board-certified neurosurgeon, health practitioner, author and lecturer. He has more than a quarter-century of medical experience.'' linked material: An anti-vaccination article from the International Medical Council on Vaccination.
	Charlie Eclaire [fake name] Comment posted by Eclaire to News Talk 3AW 693, 21 Oct 2016 Eclaire [quote]: ''Hi Neil, I just rang through to discuss Jill Hennessy's comments about anti-vaxxers. I'm really disappointed that I was cut off mid way through a sentance [sic] when answering your questions about the ample scientific evidence that exists proving not only that vaccines cause autism but also that they can and do cause serious debilitating injury and death. Many of us have tried to get an appointment with Jill to provide her with the scientific evidence that she continues to deny exists. A friend with a sevely [sic] vaccine injured child has been trying unsuccessfully for one year to see Jill and her staff won't respond. I find it reprehensible that Jill has the nerve to call us uneducated hippies proclaiming she will look us in the eye and condemn us personally while never given any of us an opportunity to share our stories and the evidence that backs our claims. You are contributing to the denial that vaccines cause autism but if you support the truth, you would be encouraging the subpoena of Dr. William Thompson, a senior scientist at the CDC who has come forward as a whistleblower with 10,000 documents that prove that the CDC committed scientific fraud and deliberately withheld evidence that proves a link between vaccines and autism. Yesterday a further dozen or more senior scientists at the CDC have come forward to confirm that the CDC are fabricating data to represent the vested interests who fund them. I plead with you to watch #vaxxed, to read the public statement below released by Dr. Thompsons whistleblower lawyer, to watch congressman Posey plead on congress house floor that Dr. Thompson be subpoena and finally, I ask you to encourage this debate rather than shut down the conversation as Jill is attempting to do by trying to censor this documentary. You are in a position to make a difference, please use your voice for good.'' [links redacted]