Policy statement on sexual and reproductive health, including access to services for the termination of pregnancy

Recognising that State and Territory Governments in Australia have the constitutional powers to enact laws regarding the registration of medical and health establishments such as hospitals and day hospitals, the registration of health professionals thus giving them rights to practice, or which allow or disallow the sale of certain pharmaceutical products and related health products such as contraceptive devices, or to enact laws relating to the legality or otherwise of actions by health professionals which affect individual patients, and Noting that States and Territories also have the constitutional powers to make laws relating to the provision of public health education programs as well as to regulate the establishment and the curriculum of educational institutions, and
Recognising that the Commonwealth Parliament has enacted laws for the provision of monies to the States and Territory Governments for specific purposes bearing on the financing of public hospitals, of public health programs, and of public and private schools, including through the Commonwealth-State Hospitals Agreement, and
Recognising that the Commonwealth Parliament has enacted laws to provide for the provision of financial subsidies to individuals to defray the costs to the individual of purchase of approved pharmaceutical products, through the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, as well as of the costs to the individual of medical consultations, through the Medical Benefits Schedule of the National Health Insurance Act, and
Taking account of the current discussion within the Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia and elsewhere concerning the desirability of modification of its policies and programs bearing on the management of women’s fertility and the termination of pregnancy,

The National Foundation for Australian Women:

1. calls upon members of the Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia to
   1. ensure that no changes are enacted or made by Regulation or by Ministerial discretion to the Medical Benefits Schedule which would in any way restrict the current access of women and girls to the existing Commonwealth subsidy of the costs of legal and medically conducted terminations of pregnancy;
   2. take immediate steps to bring the rebates provided for relevant procedures in the Medical Benefits Schedule into consistency with the contemporary costs of provision of such procedures, and maintain that consistency into the future;
   3. develop and provide funds, in consultation with the governments of States and Territories, health professionals, education professionals and representatives of women’s organisations, for a national program of comprehensive sexual health education (using evidence –based research) which includes relationships counselling, STI (including HIV/AIDS) prevention, information about contraception including emergency contraception and sexual and reproductive health education;
   4. provide readily affordable access to an appropriate range of independent, professional and confidential counselling and services for girls and women including information and access to choices in contraceptive options, protection against unplanned pregnancy including as a result of sexual violence and counselling and services for those considering termination of a pregnancy, after a termination, and for relinquishing mothers.
2. draws to the attention of legislators that it is inappropriate to assume inability on the part of individual women to make informed decisions, as well as a proven ineffective intervention, to require women seeking a termination of a pregnancy to view ultrasound scans of their foetus.

The National Foundation for Australian Women asserts that the issue of when and whether a medical procedure is required and appropriate is a decision which involves exclusively the woman and her medical adviser.

For further information please contact Marie Coleman on 0414 483067 or mariecoleman@nfaw.org.