We need urgent reforms that will protect, reinvest in, and reopen rural maternity services.
The human cost of this crisis is profound:
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Families are being forced to travel long distances for maternity care, incurring significant financial burdens and emotional strain from being separated from loved ones at such a critical time.
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The closure of maternity services has a domino effect, leading to the departure of other health professionals and the loss of additional vital services in rural and remote areas.
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Women are at risk of trauma from giving birth roadside or at home without medical assistance, leading to complications for ...
We need urgent reforms that will protect, reinvest in, and reopen rural maternity services.
The human cost of this crisis is profound:
-
Families are being forced to travel long distances for maternity care, incurring significant financial burdens and emotional strain from being separated from loved ones at such a critical time.
-
The closure of maternity services has a domino effect, leading to the departure of other health professionals and the loss of additional vital services in rural and remote areas.
-
Women are at risk of trauma from giving birth roadside or at home without medical assistance, leading to complications for both mother and baby.
Despite the prioritisation of local access to maternity services in state and federal policies, there has been no comprehensive action or commitment to reopen these critical services in rural areas. With over 7 million Australians living in rural communities, contributing more than $500 billion to our economy, the loss of maternity care is unacceptable.
In some rural areas, 1 in 50 births occur before arrival, many of them on the roadside, and more than half of rural maternity services have closed since the early 1990s. This crisis is putting women and babies at increased risk of adverse outcomes, including mortality, and adding to the financial and psychological strain on families.
There is an urgent need for reforms to ensure access to safe, accessible maternity care in rural Australia. Specifically, we are asking for the following policy commitments:
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Deliver bundled funding across maternity settings and care providers to ensure more equity in funding and service delivery for rural communities.
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Address structural and financial barriers preventing women from accessing endorsed midwives, including ensuring Medicare coverage for homebirths.
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Ensure that funding agreements between the Commonwealth and State/Territory governments include provisions for providing maternity services according to the Rural Birthing Index.
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Capture and publish national maternity care satisfaction data and experiences of the perinatal period to ensure transparency and improve outcomes.
Bush babies’ matter.
Email your Federal MPs - Bush Babies Matter!
Our Federal Members of Parliament can support reforms to ensure better rural maternity services.
We need to you to email your MP to ensure collective rural voices are heard to make positive change for our rural families.
Despite the prioritisation of local access to maternity services in state and federal policies, there has been no comprehensive action or commitment to reopen these critical services in rural areas. With over 7 million Australians living in rural communities, contributing more than $500 billion to our economy, the loss of maternity care is unacceptable.
In some rural areas, 1 in 50 births occur before arrival, many of them on the roadside, and more than half of rural maternity services have closed since the early 1990s. This crisis is putting women and babies at increased risk of adverse outcomes, including mortality, and adding to the financial and psychological strain on families.
We need your voices to make change. We are a few months out from a Federal Election. It is so important to send this email, and share with friends and family to do the same.