“A REALLY UNUSUAL CASE”
After the verdict, vocal anti-vaccine campaigner Liz Gunn told a small crowd of supporters to pressure Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to somehow reverse the decision.
“Jacinda, this is at your feet,” she said, appearing close to tears. “Beg them to show some humanity in this country, which we were once so proud of and of which I am now so ashamed.”
Health authorities had rejected the parents’ request for unvaccinated blood, arguing it was impractical and unnecessary.
The family claims to have dozens of non-vaccinated donors lined up.
New Zealand’s blood service does not make a distinction between donations from those vaccinated or unvaccinated against COVID-19, as there is no extra risk from using vaccinated blood.
“This is a really unusual case where the parents want better treatment for their child than the state is offering,” Sue Grey, lawyer for the parents, said last month.
“It’s gone down this path because we have a government and a blood bank … (who) are not willing to make these services available.
“Not only are they not offering those services, they are saying: ‘We know best what’s good for your baby and we want you to do it our way.'”
