This International Women’s Day comes less than three weeks since the federal government pledged more than half a billion dollars to support the health of women and girls, committing to policy reforms in contraception, menopause, endometriosis, and more.
It’s fitting that this year’s UN IWD theme is ‘March Forward’. To me, this commitment reflects a monumental turning point for women’s health in our country. Many have been calling for these reforms for years and its impact cannot be understated. These proposals will be life changing.
How?
In 2022, Organon commissioned a report measuring the cost and impact of unintended pregnancy in Australia. This research showed 40 per cent of all pregnancies in 2020 were unintended – defined as either a pregnancy that occurs when no children or no more children are desired. This is equivalent to nearly 200,000 pregnancies in one year Australia-wide.
Unintended pregnancies in our country disproportionately effect women who live in rural settings including those from indigenous communities, who are 1.4 times more likely to experience an unintended pregnancy.
This report illustrated the economic consequence of unintended pregnancy is $7.2 billion annually – a cost that impacts all levels of our society, most significantly, the woman herself.
Beyond the short-term financial implications, an unintended pregnancy is a risk factor for poor mental health, marital conflict and long-term economic hardship. Planned parenthood also has important health benefits for both maternal and infant health.
Revisiting the significant impact of unintended pregnancy in this context is significant for two reasons.
Firstly, it demonstrates just how important it is to provide women with education and support about their reproductive choices. Women need to know about, and have access to, all contraceptive options available to them including oral contraceptives and long-acting reversible contraceptives (LARCs) to ensure they can make an informed decision based on their life stage and preferences.
Secondly, because this commitment by the government provides part of the solution; a pathway forward to reducing this physical, emotional and economic impact of unintended pregnancies for Australian women and their families.
Following this announcement, we now have a bipartisan commitment to deliver more services across the spectrum of women’s health issues including larger Medicare payments for healthcare practitioners providing LARC insertions and removals aimed at unlocking more bulk billing for these services, as well as a greater range of contraceptives listed on the PBS. These measures will provide women with greater access to contraceptive choice.
Additionally, women experiencing menopause will now also have greater Medicare support with a new rebate for menopause health assessments, a focus on awareness raising of the impact of menopause and the first ever clinical guidelines to support improved clinical practice to identify early symptoms. This really is a turning point and a moment that women have waited for, for too long.
This outcome, and the ability to have such lasting change, is the result of extensive, thoughtful, considered advocacy from across our healthcare system. Most notably a direct result of the recommendations put forward at the Senate Inquiry into Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare and the Senate Inquiry into Menopause and Perimenopause, by people with lived experience, advocacy groups, clinicians, scientific leaders, academics and industry.
These systemic reforms needed a systemic approach. This includes contributions from industry, which I believe continues to play a crucial role in closing the gap in women’s health in Australia and around the world – by listening to where there is the greatest need, identifying the gaps, seeking out the opportunities and ultimately delivering impactful, medicines and solutions that address the unique health needs of women.
For all of these reasons, we have a lot to celebrate this International Women’s Day. Together, we are gaining momentum. We are accelerating action to improve outcomes for women. But there is more to do.
Today, women live in poor health for 25 per cent more of their lives than males. That is one quarter of their lives in poorer health just for being a woman. If this glaring inequality could be addressed, it could unlock $1 trillion in annual global GDP by 2040.
The government’s recent commitment is a watershed moment for progress in tackling this glaring gender inequality in our health system. Next, it is critical that the implementation of these reforms are measured and monitored to ensure the success and impact of this meaningful investment.
It’s clear that we are our most effective, when we act together. We need to maintain this momentum, to identify the barriers and unmet needs that require our attention and advocacy.
Together, we can accelerate action to achieve a healthier world for all women and girls.