PRIVATE MEMBERS' BUSINESS

Mr VENNING (Grey) (13:01): I rise to acknowledge Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month and Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day on Thursday 15 October. This is an opportunity to acknowledge the grief of families who have experienced miscarriage, stillbirth or the loss of an infant, and remind them that their loss is indeed not forgotten. Every year in Australia, more than 110,000 women experience miscarriage.

Behind that number is a family—a mother, a father, siblings, grandparents—and friends whose lives are changed forever. For many, the healthcare system is a huge part of their experience during pregnancy, birth and loss. That is why we acknowledge Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day.

But we also need to talk about whether every woman in Australia has access to the health care she needs and when she needs it. According to Labor, there are two classes of women: women from metropolitan Australia and women from the regions. I'll explain why.

Just recently, local GPs and anaesthetists in Jamestown and Crystal Brook reached out to me about changes to local birthing services. They are concerned the new model would see birthing services operate from one site at a time, with services alternating between Jamestown and Crystal Brook. Labor's answer to a shortage of midwives is to share out the shortage and to call it a service.

For an expectant mother, this is not simply a question of where a service is located on a map. Pregnancy does not happen according to a roster. Babies do not arrive according to a government timetable.

Regional mums need certainty about where they can give birth, not a calendar telling them where they can't. Today I'm talking about the closure of Crystal Brook and Jamestown, but they are not alone. Earlier this year, birthing services at Kapunda closed, and birthing services in Whyalla are off and on.

And today I'm still calling out the Prime Minister and the Treasurer for their dealings with Kate, a midwife who answered Australia's call to come out and fill critical shortages, and you've slugged her with a $44,000 fee and you'll not give it back. The question has to be asked: why are regional women being asked to accept sub-par services and reduced access to maternity services?

You wouldn't expect a regional emergency department to operate on a rotating monthly roster, so why should maternity care be treated any differently? The government cannot call the service sustainable simply because it takes turns being available. This is particularly important when we are talking about pregnancy and infant loss.

For a woman experiencing a loss, having to travel a significant distance for care can add another layer of stress and trauma at an already devastating time. For city families, a change in hospital might mean another suburb. For regional families, it can mean another region and hours in a longer drive.

Regional women deserve the same standard of care as women living in our capital cities. They deserve to have their local doctors and their communities properly consulted before the bringing in of such sweeping changes and they deserve to know that, if something goes wrong during pregnancy, help is available close to home. This month makes us ask what more we can do to support women before, during and after pregnancy.

That means investing in health care that works for our regions. That means making sure decisions about maternity services are made with them, not for them. Today I acknowledge every family who has experienced pregnancy or infant loss, and I acknowledge the healthcare workers who support families through some of the most difficult moments of their lives.

When access to health care is being reduced, services are being centralised or regional families are being asked to travel further for care, I will continue to stand up for those families' right to receive quality health care closer to home. Where you live should never determine the quality of care you receive. New Labor MP Aria Bolkus, a previous staffer to now health minister Mark Butler, said recently, 'Where you live should never determine the quality of health care you receive.' Well, Aria, get in your car, come and visit Crystal Brook, Wudinna and Streaky Bay and then tell me that we have the same access.

We need action, not more spin and not more words.