Jill Hall (Shortland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Chisholm for bringing this motion about World MS Day to the House. I think it is an important motion. I also acknowledge the contribution made by the member for Cowan and thank him for sharing his personal and family experiences in relation to MS. To begin, I acknowledge the fine work being done by Robert Pask and the way he has communicated and worked really hard within this place to raise members' awareness of MS and the challenges that people with MS face on a daily basis.

There are over 16,000 people in Australia who have MS—75 per cent of those are women, 87 per cent are of working age and the average age at diagnosis is 30 years. It is a disease that tends to affect people between the ages of 20 and 30—that is the time when they are usually diagnosed. Its prevalence in Tasmania is eight to 10 times greater than in North Queensland—I note the member for Lyons has just left the House and that, as he did, he nodded in acknowledgement of that fact.

The symptoms of MS are extreme fatigue, chronic pain, impaired mobility and vision, and high co-morbidity with depression. It leads to relationship and employment problems and to the high costs of chronic illness—as much as 20 per cent of a person's income can be spent on health related needs. MS costs Australia something like $2 billion a year. This includes loss-of-productivity costs of around $160 million a year, the replacement cost of informal care provided to Australians with MS of somewhere in the vicinity of $250 million and direct out-of-pocket healthcare costs for Australians with MS of $160 million per year—that is not each; it is across the board.

The rate of full-time employment for people with MS is lower than for the Australian population and 80 per cent of people with MS lose their jobs within 10 years of diagnosis. Their representation in part-time work is 30 per cent higher. People with MS have higher occupational skills levels than the Australian population, but 48 per cent of people with MS earn less than $300 per week. That compares with 39 per cent of the wider population. The annual productivity cost is, as I mentioned, somewhere in the vicinity of $160 million.

The Gillard government recognises these problems and the Parliamentary Secretary for Disability Services is particularly keen to help—to increase employment in our community for people with MS and to give them the support they need. Jobs in Jeopardy assistance is available through the Disability Employment Services program to help people stay in the workforce. There is also initial support of up to $500 per week for employing a worker with normal hours of work for six months. If ongoing support is then required, an independent assessment is made. Annual funding for such support can be up to $13,200 and is available as long as required.

MS can advance in many ways. When it does, it can result in impairment to mobility and other functions. The government is committed to ensuring that people with MS get the maximum support they need. I would also like to acknowledge Nicole Mundy, one of my constituents, who has come and spoken to me about the issues and needs that she has. She is a young woman, a professional woman, who is managing to maintain her job, but she is constantly faced with challenges. She has shared those challenges with me and emphasised the importance of government support for people suffering from MS. I would like to conclude by once again thanking the member for Chisholm for bringing to the attention of the House that 26 May was World MS Day.

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