Act NOW for homebirth in Australia

[BellyBelly]

Dear Homebirth Supporters & Friends -

We need your urgent help to get homebirth publicly funded in Australia
in 2008. We have had extremely positive feedback from the key advisers
of the Health Minister and the Minister for Women, following meetings
Homebirth Access Sydney held with them earlier this year. Both advisers
agreed we "made a very good case", that they are "convinced", that they
are "very keen" to pursue our proposal and that they will keep putting
the matter before their Ministers.

However, to do this, they need to receive a flood of letters and
follow-up phone calls from you and all your friends and family. Some of
you may have received the attached letter template in an email a couple
of weeks ago; some of you may be receiving it for the first time. It is
extremely important that you all personalise, print and post the letters
to each of the Health Minister, the Minister for Women and your Local
Member. Good intentions are great, but politicians must actually receive
letters for your intentions to be enacted into law.

Having energetic advisers on side is a huge opportunity: let's not let
it slip through our fingers. Please use the attached letter template and
get letter-writing today. And please forward this email to anyone you
think might be interested in seeing some equity in the funding of
maternity services in Australia . If you have any questions please
contact Danni at dannit@bigpond.net.au or on 02 9011 5708.

Warm regards
HOMEBIRTH ACCESS SYDNEY

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Cut and past the letter below into a word doc, amend for your personal details and send to your minister and local reps.

<insert your name and address>

The Hon Nicola Roxon
Minister for Health and Ageing
PO Box 6022
House of Representatives
Parliament House
Canberra ACT 2600
<remember to change this address for each letter and to delete everything in italics!>

<insert the date>



Dear Minister <when writing to your local member, if they?re not a minister, substitute their name: Dear Mr/Ms Surname>

I am writing to you to ask you to provide Federal Government support to women who choose to give birth at home with the assistance of an independent midwife.

<Add a paragraph of personal information if you wish ? why you support homebirth, your own experience and why you think this action is important.>

I am aware that support for expanding midwifery care was part of the ALP?s pre-election platform on Maternal and Child Health Services, in particular:

Reviewing the Medicare schedule to include midwives in the provision of maternity care and to facilitate the expansion of midwife-led care; and
Considering models of indemnification to facilitate the practice of midwives as experts and primary care givers in normal birth.

I look forward to the Rudd Labor Government implementing these policies as soon as possible as a way of providing better, safer birth choices for Australian mothers.

The World Health Organization (WHO) recognises midwives as ?the most appropriate and cost effective type of health care provider to be assigned to the care of women in normal pregnancy and birth,? and the safety of planned homebirth is now well established in both Australian and international research.

Midwifery care is a preventative health measure which not only assists in keeping well women and their babies out of hospital beds but represents a significant cost saving to Government. A birth at home costs significantly less than even the most straight-forward hospital birth and women who birth at home are less likely to have interventions including assisted delivery and caesarean section, or distressed babies. Women?s and their partners? satisfaction with birth is also increased and women are more likely to breastfeed. .

I also feel strongly that this is an issue of choice - supporting all women to choose the place and the practitioner that they feel most comfortable when giving birth.

I would really appreciate your support for this issue in the lead up to the May 2008 budget.

I look forward to your response.

Kind regards



<insert your name>

[Tobily]

oohh ooh I'm on it.
Will post this on my QLD doula group as well

[Pandora]

*bump*
Just wondering if anyone else got a reply to the letter(s) they sent.
I got a full page reply from Niclo Roxon's office indicating that they are considering making midwifery services medicare rebatable (?) but it did not specifically mention homebirth midwifery.
Still I was surprised to get a reply back at all. I had hoped to get something back for JGs office considering she is my local member