The mother of a seven-year-old boy who died from meningococcal disease described plans for a national vaccination program as a knee-jerk reaction.

Sue-Anne Sanig lost her son Stephen on June 5 last year after the boy was sent home from a central coast hospital with an initial diagnosis of gastro-enteritis.

Mrs Sanig criticised the government for not doing enough research into developing a vaccine for the B strain, which killed her son and accounted for 80 per cent of cases.

It could also turn to septicaemia, or blood poisoning, most quickly.

The vaccination program proposed by the government would only target the C strain, which Ms Sanig said caused 18 per cent of cases.

She also said there should be routine blood testing for every child with a high temperature and treatment with antibiotics if the infection proved bacterial.

"The Australian government is not putting any money into research and is not doing anything about it and their reaction to the C strain vaccination is a knee-jerk reaction," she said.

"Let's have the hospitals do a blood test straight up if a child presents with a fever that doesn't respond straight away.

"If we have a bacteria we can give it broadband antibiotics, slow it down so septicaemia doesn't develop.

"It gives us time to find out whether it is (meningococcal).

"Let's look to the worst case scenario and work back."

Mrs Sanig said the Norwegian government had developed a vaccine for their particular B strain and now had it under control, and New Zealand was also making inroads in the battle against B.

"We are not doing any medical research into it whatsoever here," she said.

"I thoroughly agree with (today's initiative) and it's wonderful, but it's not enough."

One million Australians would be vaccinated against meningococcal disease C strain next year under a $41 million national plan targeting babies and teenagers, health minister Kay Patterson announced today.

Ms Sanig, a director of the Meningococcal Association of Australia, is heading a central coast meningococcal education program.

A pamphlet with a photograph of Stephen and information about the disease will be launched in Tumbi Umbi this Friday.

©AAP 2002