Page 1816 - Week 06 - Wednesday, 4 May 2005
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .
The accident and emergency departments of our public hospitals face continued pressure as more and more people find that attending a general practice is simply beyond their financial means. The Treasurer, Mr Quinlan, reminded us yesterday that in the years 2000-01 to 2003-04 our two major hospital outpatient occasions of service grew from 361,000 to 427,000. The federal government has undermined the system of primary health care to the point where the ACT government has to pick up the tab.
ACT residents find it difficult to access equitable and affordable health care and, as I said, this is directly caused by the Howard government and its campaign to make the user pay. The Howard government has forced ACT residents to think twice about accessing health care—something no parent, no elderly person, no person with a disability, no ACT resident should ever have to do.
The Howard government has continued its campaign with a recent proposal to limit the number of IVF treatments women can access by limiting access to Medicare rebates on the procedure. It was not so long ago that the federal Treasurer, Peter Costello, exhorted women to have children, to “pop them out”, so to speak, in abundance—one for the husband, one for the wife and one for the nation. Aside from the fact that it is one of the most offensive things to have ever come out of Mr Costello’s mouth, it is interesting that women are now being told that their right to access IVF, a procedure that can enable otherwise childless women to have a family, is now being removed.
As many people would know, the decision to have a child is not an easy one these days and many women find the decision stressful at the best of times as they juggle conflicting demands of work, family and the economic realities of making ends meets. Many workplaces are not as family friendly as they should be and, for many women whose work is in an uncertain environment, it is impossible for them to decide whether to establish a career or to take time off to have a child or children.
Family finances are further put under pressure by the arrival of children and, for many prospective parents, having a child is simply not financially possible while the Howard government continues to erode childcare systems, the education system and our health care, not to mention our workplace terms and conditions.
The process of simply giving birth—not that giving birth could be ever described as simple—means financial pressures in itself: ultrasound, GP visits, specialist consultations and hospital stays. Pregnant women face increasing costs just to ensure that their child is brought into the world healthy and happy and that both mother and child remain healthy throughout. Add to all this the fertility issues and this decision becomes quite traumatic for women and their partners.
Before the recent federal election, Tony Abbott and John Howard were heard to be espousing the view that the best thing about Medicare is that it is uncapped, patient driven. The Prime Minister claimed that this was the fundamental element of Medicare. This would appear to be yet another Howard government lie as he and his mates undermine the so-called Medicare safety net and begin to cap treatments that patients have the right to access. The Howard government will continue to wage its campaign to make the user pay until the very end. No-one can deny the conservative bent of the
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .