The costs of preventive vaccine programs and curative medicine are funded from different sources. Vaccines are currently funded by the Commonwealth and subsidised through the states according to local vaccination policies, whilst the costs of curing cases of these diseases is broadly funded through the Medicare and private health insurance systems. Savings to Medicare and health insurance funds, as a result of successful vaccination programs, are not automatically transferred to the Commonwealth to fund the vaccine programs. Savings -or costs -in one area are of little interest or importance to other program areas.