Acting Deputy President.
For too long in this building, women’s health hasn’t received the attention, the solutions or the funding that it deserves.
I doubt there’s a single woman in Australia who doesn’t have one story about how the health system has let her, or a loved one, down.
A woman’s health journey is categorically different to a man’s.
Not just because our bodies tick differently.
But because there’s a stigma that surrounds everything from our first periods to our last.
And that stigma has not just a personal impact, but a policy impact.
It has stopped the right conversations from happening about women’s health. And therefore the right policy solutions.
I am deeply proud of the work of two recent Senate inquiries into women’s health that have taken place through the Community Affairs Committee this term – one on menopause and perimenopause, and the other on women’s sexual, reproductive and maternal health care.
I want to thank and acknowledge the work of Senators Pratt, Allman Payne, Kovacic, Hughes, Askew, and most of all Senator Waters.
These inquiries deliberately harnessed the great big spotlight that we have available to us in this place, and shone in brightly on an area of policy that has been shrouded in stigma and ignored for too long.
And our work confirmed what I have long been raising the alarm on.
Because, we know, that when it comes to women’s health, you simply don’t need to look very hard to see where women’s pain or symptoms too often go ignored, or at worst, are outright dismissed.
Women are sick to death of going unheard.
They are sick to death of having their pain minimised.
They are sick to death of feeling like the only part of their health journey that matters, is puberty to childbirth.
Like nothing of consequence happens to a woman once she has become a mother, once she enters midlife.
Over 600 women and organisations shared their stories with our Senate Inquiries.
They told us stories of being let down by their GPs.
Of getting crappy or misinformed advice.
Of their difficulties getting support at work.
Of their inability to access affordable and effective contraception that works for them.
Of their HRT not being listed, and therefore not being accessible.
Of the stigma.
Of the lack of information.
Of being dismissed, denied, not believed.
We heard these women.
The Labor Government heard these women.
And change is here.
Half a billion dollars for women’s health.
I can barely express my relief.
When you get public policy right, you can change lives for the better.
This announcement will change women’s lives, and is a massive step forward in ensuring they get the care, support and treatment that they need.
Acting Deputy President.
Our inquiry into menopause and perimenopause received 285 submissions and held seven public hearings around the country.
The message from women was resoundingly clear: when it comes to their experience of menopause, they feel let down in two ways.
- First, when it comes to healthcare, too often they feel unheard or dismissed, and too infrequently are they getting up to date, good quality advice when they have sought out their doctor.
- The doctors themselves told us they received as little as one hour training on menopause over the course of their whole degree, and that simply wasn’t enough given half their patients would experience it.
- Second, the stigma that has surrounded menopause is stopping a conversation in workplaces about the flexibility and support some women may need if their symptoms are troubling.
I want to talk for a moment about how the measures that Labor announced on Sunday go to these issues.
From 1 July 2025, a new Medicare rebate for menopause health assessments will be introduced for women experiencing menopause and perimenopause, so they can get the care and support they need from their family GP.
The Government will also provide funding for health professionals to undertake additional training in menopause and perimenopause and develop the first-ever national clinical guidelines.
We’re building more endometriosis and pelvic pain clinics in more places and expanding their remit of care to include menopause and perimenopause.
Since coming to Government, Labor has invested more than $127 million to support women with endometriosis, including boosting Medicare rebates for specialist gynaecological care, listing the first endometriosis medicine on the PBS in 30 years, and establishing 22 endometriosis and pelvic pain clinics.
As part of this package, the Government will deliver another 11 endometriosis and pelvic pain clinics across Australia and expand the remit of all 33 clinics to also provide specialist support for menopause and perimenopause.
For the first time in twenty years, we are putting new hormone treatments on the PBS for menopause. Alot has changed in 20 years, and this will mean more choice, and greater access for these therapies.
A national awareness campaign will roll out to keep bashing down this stigma and to ensure that when women do reach out to their GPs they are armed with information, because information is power.
And while it is of course important to reaffirm that not all women will have a rough time of menopause, we know that for some women, troubling symptoms can impact their participation at work.
I don’t want to see a single woman in the prime of her life turn down a promotion, let go of an opportunity, or step away from a job she loves and relies on because she hasn’t got the right care and support for her symptoms.
If we can get her primary care right, we can change her life.
And if we keep fighting this stigma, keen advancing the conversations in workplaces about the simple changes that make a huge difference, we can turn this around.
Acting Deputy President, our women’s health issue isn’t just for women in mid life.
For the first time in 30 years our government is listing more modern pills to the PBS.
Yaz and Yasmin, known so well to tens of thousands of women.
These women will save hundreds of dollars a year.
We're also funding bulk billed insertion and removal for long-term contraceptives, increasing the rebate, and undertaking more training for healthcare professionals for insertion and removal.
We are offering more choice, lower costs, and better health care for Australian women.
You don’t have to think very deeply to appreciate just why this might be happening under our first ever majority woman government.
Whether it’s saving hundreds of dollars on contraceptives, opening more endometriosis and pelvic pain clinics, or ensuring more reliable support for women going through menopause – this comprehensive package will deliver for millions of women and their families.
