A large billboard on Auckland's motorway sporting an anti-vaccination message has been discounted by a nearby hospital.
The sign, which went up yesterday, is located by the Southern Motorway near the Princes St off-ramp near Middlemore Hospital.
The sign shows a man holding a baby and bears the message: "If you knew the ingredients in a vaccine, would you risk it?"
Shortly after the sign was erected, several people were quick to voice their concerns at the location of the billboard because of its proximity to the motorway and to Middlemore Hospital.
The sign also bears the website for WavesNZ, a group that believes that natural immunity is a superior defence to illness compared to vaccinations from medical professionals.
Emma Espiner said in a tweet she would lodge a complaint with the Advertising Standard Authority.
Grant Jacobs chimed in, saying: "These things confuse first-time parents who understandably worry about what they ought to be doing."
"Seems very irresponsible of the advertising agency to allow it there in the first place," Lance O'Riley said.
A Reddit thread has also been created, with people opposing the billboard. The thread currently has more than 200 comments.
Several have argued that the billboard breaches two parts of the Advertising Standards Authority's basic principles.
Those two parts being "No advertisement should be misleading or deceptive or likely to mislead or deceive the consumer" and "All advertisements should be prepared with a due sense of social responsibility to consumers and to society".
A Counties Manukau District Health Board spokeswoman said the DHB had no direct relationship with the billboard.
"We do not support anti-vaccine messages," the spokeswoman said.
"We promote vaccination as a proven step to prevent illness in both children and adults."
The Herald understands the billboard would remain up for the month of October.
The Advertising Standards Authority has been approached for comment.
WavesNZ spokesperson Truly Godfrey said the billboard was erected to encourage parents to seek information about the contents of vaccines in order to make informed choices.
Dr Stewart Jessamine told the Herald following the death of the two children that the Ministry of Health did not know where Samoa sourced its MMR vaccine from, but confirmed it was not supplied from New Zealand.
"New Zealand currently uses a brand of MMR vaccine called Priorix. It's made mostly in France and Belgium and tested there before it's sent to New Zealand.
"It's monitored along the way to make sure it's kept at a constant safe temperature until it's administered to patients.''
Jessamine stressed that the MMR vaccine in New Zealand had an excellent safety profile and had been used without significant problem for several decades.
University of Auckland vaccinologist Dr Helen Petousis-Harris said one death, let alone two, was extremely rare, and there had never been a death associated with the MMR vaccine in New Zealand.
Petousis-Harris acknowledged that there could now be fears from parents about the safety of vaccines and immunisations.
But she said it was important for people to understand that the vaccine programme was a very safe one in New Zealand.
"The last thing you want is for people to be fearful of something that we know is actually incredibly safe."