The policy of funding meningococcal serogroup C vaccine was built on a sustained program of epidemiological evidence, ethical decision-making and public support (and was arguably honed by public pressure). Pneumococcal disease and varicella vaccination programs however, were neither supported by good local epidemiological evidence nor respectable levels of public awareness about these diseases. There had not been a similar program of sustained policy building to support or drive a decision to fund these vaccines. As a funding policy, this was noteworthy in that it marked a departure from previous policies where all recommended vaccines were fully funded by governments. National vaccination policy is designed to advise vaccination policy makers and practitioners of the most up-to-date thinking about optimal vaccination schedules for Australian children, and is not therefore proscriptive, unlike the United Kingdom (UK). Changing or adding vaccines to the recommended schedule is therefore an advisory matter, and the question of funding the vaccination program is decided separately.