Portfolio — 26 May 2026

Minister for Health and Ageing Mark Butler used question time on 26 May to catalogue a suite of government actions on menopause and perimenopause, the day after the formal launch of Australia's first national Menopause and Perimenopause information campaign [TA-260526-house-fe3d2ac10a60:s143]. The parliamentary remarks served as immediate reinforcement of that 25 May launch, with Butler telling the House that women across Australia face widespread gaps in menopause and perimenopause information — framing the campaign as a direct response to that deficit [TA-260526-house-fe3d2ac10a60:s143].

Butler pointed to three concrete policy instruments as evidence of the government's approach. First, training for doctors and health professionals on menopause has been expanded, responding to findings of limited medical education identified by a Senate inquiry [TA-260526-house-fe3d2ac10a60:s143]. Second, clinical guidelines are being updated to improve care for women experiencing menopause and perimenopause [TA-260526-house-fe3d2ac10a60:s143].

Third, the government has listed three widely used menopause hormone treatments on the PBS for the first time in two decades, with the minister stating the measure benefits around 150,000 women and saves each up to $580 annually [TA-260526-house-fe3d2ac10a60:s143].

The Medicare menopause health assessment item — introduced in July — has now been used by more than 105,000 Australian women, a figure Butler cited as a usage benchmark [TA-260526-house-fe3d2ac10a60:s143]. Taken together, the PBS listings, the Medicare item, the updated clinical guidelines, and the expanded professional training represent a multi-instrument portfolio response that the minister presented as coherent and sequenced, rather than ad hoc.

The timing of the House remarks — one day after the campaign launch — signals an intentional communications strategy: using parliamentary question time to extend the public-facing launch into the legislative record and to associate the measure set explicitly with the government's health equity agenda for women.