Bridget Archer (Bass, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister representing the Minister for Women. Will the minister please advise the House on the measures the Morrison government is taking to improve the health of Australian women, particularly those living in rural and regional Australia?

Sussan Ley (Farrer, Liberal Party, Minister for the Environment) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Bass for her question. The health of women and girls in Australia is fundamental to us all, not just to the individuals themselves but to their families, their communities and to the nation. The Morrison government recognises this and the National Women's Health Strategy 2020-2030 was launched by the minister for health last year. The strategy identifies policy gaps and new and emerging health priorities for women and girls. It presents recommendations for action and highlights the need for collaboration between governments at all levels, the health sector, patient groups and the women themselves.

Importantly, rural and regional women are identified as a priority population in this strategy. This is because women in rural and remote areas have poorer health outcomes than those in the city. They have greater health risks and they find it more difficult to access health services. Sadly we know, too, that the gap is even greater between Indigenous and non-Indigenous women, and we're working harder to close that gap. We are committed to tackling the issue.

In the member's electorate, on the ground, what that means is we're supporting mobile health hubs, something fought for by the member for Bass. That's doctors and specialists going out on wheels—travelling directly to patients with chronic health conditions and working hard for them. It means we're enhancing access and supporting the continued use of mobile cancer screening services for women in rural and remote areas, and it means we're increasing the number of Commonwealth funded breast care nurses through the McGrath Foundation from 57 to 102. It means improving access to mental health services and subsidising telehealth consultations. I know the member for Bass has been a real champion of rural mental health, having secured additional funding for the expansion of her local headspace in Launceston.

More broadly, the government has many goals, including the goal to reduce stillbirths by 20 per cent or more over the next five years. The rate is higher, unfortunately, in rural and regional Australia. That followed a bipartisan Senate inquiry in 2018. Senator Keneally in the other place played a strong role there. We also created the first national plan for endometriosis in 2018, championed by members on both sides, none more so than the member for Boothby. She was brave in the face of a despicable campaign against her at the last election, and brave on behalf of all the women whose voices she has raised in this parliament.

The health of rural and regional women, and all Australian women, remains a key focus of the Morrison government.