Sunrise panellists Elka Whalan and Sally Obermeder in hot water over vaccination debate

SUNRISE stars went head-to-head this morning over vaccinations. Even Kochie couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

SUNRISE panellists Elka Whalan and Sally Obermeder have been accused of giving credence to anti-vaccination views on the morning program.

Appearing on the regular “Kochie’s Angels” segment, the two were discussing whooping cough vaccinations — picking up on the recent tragic case from Perth in which a four-week-old boy died from the disease. (Babies must be at least two months old before they can be vaccinated, although a vaccine can be given to the mother in the final trimester of a pregnancy.)

First panellist Shelly Horton and host David Koch were champions of the traditional medically-endorsed view that children ought to be vaccinated.

But Whalan and Obermeder seemed to give credence to the anti-vaccination viewpoint.

“Isn’t it the parents’ right to choose what they want for their child?” Obermeder said. “No parent chooses to do it or not do it because they don’t love their child. Parents love their kids and they make the best decision think they’re making.”

When challenged by Koch that parents had a wider responsibility than just to their own kids, Obermeder said: “No jab, no play, fair enough.”

“Go speak to your doctor, hear from someone who knows and you’ll probably decide to vaccinate,” she said later.

Stressing parents’ choice ... Elka Whalan

On the defensive ... Sally Obermeder

Whalan suggested parents “research both sides of the story”.

“A study has shown if you are being vaccinated for whooping cough at the later stages of pregnancy it will help that young infant being born into the world, and for that, absolutely, it makes sense, the research has been done,” Whalan said — perhaps forgetting that research has proven the benefits of infant vaccinations as well.

The Sunrise debate comes a week after writer Jo Thornely demolished the latest attempt by the Australian Vaccination-Skeptics Network to give oxygen to the discredited theory that there is a link between vaccines and health problems such as autism and ADHD.

“There’s no other side to the debate,” Thornely wrote.

“In fact there’s no debate. A debate occurs when there are two different opinions of potentially comparable weight. Believing that vaccines cause autism in the face of zero reliable bits of evidence is like claiming that gravity is rubbish yet refusing to float upwards.”

Koch and Horton distanced themselves from the comments on this morning’s segment.

“Everybody thinks they’re an expert, using Google, but when you talk to the experts, there is no argument,” Koch said.

“No doctor doesn’t vaccinate their child,” Horton argued. “We need to stop saying what a naturopath says or what someone’s friend said on Facebook; we actually need to listen to the experts.”

The debate continued on social media, with high profile journalist Mia Freedman criticising Whalan on Twitter.

Re: vaccination @ElkaWhalan what are these "sides" you talk about? On one side there is science. There is no other side.

— Mia Freedman (@MiaFreedman) March 31, 2015

@ElkaWhalan anti-vaxxers are very good at disseminating propaganda, lies and misinformation

— Mia Freedman (@MiaFreedman) March 31, 2015

Whalan was swift to reply.

@MiaFreedman every parent & person well educated has the right to research. I am pro vaccine but you must see every side.

— Elka Whalan (@ElkaWhalan) March 31, 2015

@MiaFreedman I am pro vaccinations but have you spoken to parents who have lost babies due to being vaccinated? Every life is important.

— Elka Whalan (@ElkaWhalan) March 31, 2015