Transcript:

Ms PAYNE (Canberra) (10:30): I, too, am very excited to speak on this very important and overdue reform to women's health from Labor, offering women lower costs, more choice and better health care. For too long, women's health has not been taken seriously by decision-makers. We've heard too many stories of women struggling to access essential health care services, whether for contraception, menopause support, pelvic pain or endometriosis treatment. Women have had to fight to be heard, to be believed and to receive the care that they need. I think all of us—even if we haven't had a terrible experience, we've had an experience or multiple experiences that come to mind when we think about these things. There are many stories I and every woman I know could share about perhaps not being taken seriously, about problems not being addressed or that couldn't be worked out, or about things that don't really seem fair.

Women face a lot of extra costs at the moment in the health system, not because they're unwell but simply because they're women. Our announcement this week will change that. Our government has made a landmark investment in the health and wellbeing of Australian women, an investment of more than $500 million in women's health, which is a historic leap forward and one which will ensure better access, more choice and more affordable health care for millions of Australian women.

This is what happens when you have women in the room making the decisions, and I am so proud that our government is the first with over 50 per cent of women in its caucus. It means that these issues are being discussed. I want to pay a particular tribute to my friend and colleague the Assistant Minister for Health and Aged Care, Ged Kearney. For her whole life—as a nurse, a unionist, a member of this House and now a minister—she has fought for better health care and health outcomes for Australians, including Australian women. Part of the work that she's been doing has been shining a light on medical misogyny, which is exactly what we've talked about where, systemically, women's health has not been given the attention it deserves. She's shone a light on these stories of Australian women through forums that she's held—overwhelmed by the numbers and the stories of what people have gone through.

I also want to acknowledge Senator Marielle Smith, who headed up the Senate inquiry into menopause. Again, she shone a light on this experience that affects all women, which has for too long been hidden and taboo. Women, as usual, have been fronting up against serious health challenges but needing to go about their everyday lives as though nothing is happening and not having access to the affordable care that they need.

I would like to acknowledge Senator Katy Gallagher, my ACT colleague, who has led so much change for women as the Minister for Women in this government. I also, of course, want to acknowledge the Minister for Health and Aged Care for championing this as well. It was wonderful to join them all on Sunday at the Sexual Health and Family Planning ACT clinic, and I want to acknowledge that brilliant organisation and the support that they give to Canberra women at all stages of their journey, sometimes in difficult circumstances. The accessible advice and health care that they provide is a really important service.

This package will ensure that women on low incomes can access critical medications through pharmacies, that general practitioners are supported and rewarded for providing quality care, and that women's health concerns—too often dismissed—are met with serious investment and action. It will transform menopause care. It will make contraception more affordable and accessible, reducing unplanned pregnancies. It will ensure that women suffering from endometriosis and pelvic pain get the early diagnosis and treatment they deserve, and it will mean that women experiencing the debilitating pain of urinary tract infections can access treatment more quickly.

I recently met with pharmacists in my electorate at their pharmacy in Kingston. They were part of a trial of being able to give out antibiotics for UTIs. They were saying it is such an important thing and they hoped it would be rolled out more broadly. That is an excellent thing that women will be able to access that quickly and also avoid an appointment with a GP that could be hard to get, expensive and not really necessary if they know what the problem is and can go and get that help from the pharmacy.

These are not just policies; these are life-changing measures that will improve the lives of women across the country at all ages and in all parts of their journeys. It's for women like Allie Pepper, a world-class mountaineer, and it was wonderful to hear from her when she joined us to announce this package in Canberra this week. She described her battle with menopause as being 'harder than Everest'. She thought she'd never climb again. She fought to find a GP trained in menopause care, and once she did, the right treatment changed her life and made her feel like herself again. Allie is now making incredible progress on her goal to climb all 14 of the 18,000-metre peaks across the world—without oxygen. Our medical system cannot stand in the way of women like Allie not only achieving amazing goals but also going about their daily routines and facing challenges that women for too long have had to hide, being told it's 'part of being a woman'. It's not, always; sometimes there are treatments available that can make a world of difference, and this package is about making those more affordable and accessible to Australian women.

This investment also acknowledges the tireless advocacy of women's health organisations, community leaders and everyday Australians who have spoken about these challenges. Their courage and persistence have led to this moment, and I thank them all for their efforts. Our government is correcting the record for women's health through this package. For the first time in 30 years we have listed new oral contraceptive pills on the PBS. The 50,000 women who use Yaz and Yasmin will save hundreds of dollars a year. It amazed me when I heard that a pill hadn't been listed in so long, but then I remembered paying a fortune for things. What a difference this will make to Australian women. Many of the pills are old and are not as effective and don't work as well. Thirty years is a long time. These newer pills are now on the PBS and so women can find the one that is right for them.

We're also introducing more choice, lower cost and better access to long-term contraceptives, with larger Medicare payments and more bulk-billing for IUDs and birth-control implants. This will save 300,000 women up to $400 a year in out-of-pocket costs for the birth control that works best for them. The importance of ensuring that women will have choice in their birth control cannot be understated. Not every form of birth control is right for every woman. We have unique bodies and unique responses to different medications. Our government, by providing lower-cost alternatives, is giving women the option to find the birth control that's right for them. It gives us agency over our bodies and control over our reproductive health. Most women would recall being dismissed at some point in their lives while trying to sort out those sorts of issues.

As the assistant minister likes to say, medical misogyny is alive and well, a woman with endometriosis waits, on average, seven years to receive a diagnosis. Endometriosis affects one in nine women; it's not uncommon. A women with polycystic ovary syndrome waits, on average, two years for a diagnosis, and PCOS affects one in five women. These illnesses are often debilitating, with detrimental effects on both physical and mental health, and that's not taking into account menopause, which every person who menstruates will experience at some point in their lives. Menopausal hot flushes, lack of sleep and muscle-and-joint aches are an almost universal experience for women, and for too long these conditions have not received the funding, research or resources that make significant improvements to the quality of life of Australian women.

This package is investing in 11 new endometriosis and pelvic pain clinics around the country, joining the 22 we have already funded. All 33 clinics will be staffed to provide this important care to women.

I am so proud of this announcement and of my colleagues—including the assistant minister, who is here—the work that they have done, and the difference this will make to the lives of Australian women—things that seem overdue. It has taken an Albanese Labor government, with these women pushing these important issues, to achieve this change for Australian women, and I want everyone to know about it.