Women's Health Week

https://linktr.ee/sharonclaydon Sharon Claydon MP speech from Federation Chamber 16/09/26 I rise to speak about Women's Health Week and the important progress we're making to ensure women can access the health care they need when they need it. It's an opportunity to celebrate the incredible women and health professionals who are improving women's health every day, but it's also an opportunity to acknowledge the gaps that have existed for far too long, and to talk about what happens when governments decide to do something about them. For generations, too many women have been told that pain is normal, that heavy periods are something you just need to put up with, that endometriosis is somehow just part of being a woman, that the symptoms of menopause are something to quietly endure, and that reproductive health is something women should somehow just find a way to pay for. Too often women have had to become their own health advocates just to get their concerns taken seriously. Well, the Albanese Labor government is changing that, and we have made record investments in women's health—almost $800 million—to make health care more affordable, to give women more choice and to improve access to the care that they need at every single stage of life. That's an investment that is already making a real difference. Just last week we celebrated an incredible milestone. More than one million Australian women have now benefited from cheaper medicines through our health package. These women have filled more than four million cheaper medicine prescriptions, saving more than $150 million. That's $150 million that is staying in the pockets of women and families across Australia. Behind that number are one million individual women—women who can afford the medicines they need, women who have more choices about their own bodies and women who no longer have to make an impossible choice between paying for a prescription and paying for another household bill. For the first time in more than 30 years, new oral contraceptives have been listed on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme. More than 400,000 women have already benefited from cheaper contraceptive medicines, saving more than $55 million. For the first time in more than 20 years, new menopausal hormone therapies have been listed on the PBS. More than 520,000 women have already used these medicines at the cheaper PBS price, saving $110 million. This is a profound change, because menopause isn't some niche issue; it's something that around half the population is going to experience, yet for years women were left with limited treatment options and too often had to navigate a health system that was not designed around their needs. Our government is making contraception much more accessible. We've increased the Medicare rebates for the insertion and removal of IUDs and contraceptive implants, and we're reducing out-of-pocket costs for women. We're establishing eight long-acting reversible contraceptive centres of training and excellence around Australia. These centres will help train more health professionals to provide LARC care while improving access to safe, effective contraception. That's about giving women choice, because there should never be a one-size-fits-all approach to women's health. We're also delivering better care for women living with endometriosis and pelvic pain. There are now 33 endometriosis and pelvic pain clinics open and operating across Australia. These clinics mean women can access specialised care closer to home. Importantly, since 1 July, all 33 clinics have expanded their scope to provide support and care for perimenopause and menopause. More than 137,000 women have already undergone menopause health assessment since it became covered by Medicare. These numbers matter. What matters most is what they actually represent. They represent women being listened to, women getting answers, women having treatment options and women being able to access health care without cost being the big barrier. That work is particularly important because women's health does not exist in isolation. Health outcomes are shaped by where we live, whether we can afford care, whether we feel safe about accessing services, and whether the health system understands the circumstances that we're living through. Full speech available here: https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_...