Capping Medicare Saftey Net for IVF/ART

[Mindhugs]

I also got the same reply from the office of Peter Costello today. At least one person is acknowledging our cries.

PS Does anyone know how I can delete these extra lines from my signature? When I go into edit it, the lines aren't there. Then when I preview, they appear ?*&%$#!

[briggsy's girl]

my mum got a call from the local rag today - they had no idea what was going on! they asked if they could do a story on our situation. i spoke to DH about it, and we've decided not to do it. as much as we haven't hidden our journey from friends etc, my DH is estranged from his family, who also live locally, and we just don't want that information out there - all it would take is someone to work out it was us (they can't guarantee that all identifying info would be omitted), and they'd then know we've lost angel babies, we've been through IVF, we've relied on the safety net - not info we want out there

if we weren't from such a small area, i'd have done it in a heartbeat, but i just can't bring myself to put it out there around here...

[Frangipani]

I too have received my letter from my fertility group and from ACCESS today requesting I write a letter and I definitely intend to cause I think it SUCKS! I will probably steal some of your letter samples (hope you's don't mind)...cause I ain't the best formal letter writer (obviously ). Will also let you's know how I go too.

[buliej]

BG - I totally understand - it would be one thing if they could guaranty all personal details would be omitted - but it's such a personal story that this would be impossible. I do hope they still do a story on this topic.

Bec - copy away!

[Loula]

I too have received my letter from my fertility group and from ACCESS today requesting I write a letter and I definitely intend to cause I think it SUCKS! I will probably steal some of your letter samples (hope you's don't mind)...cause I ain't the best formal letter writer (obviously ). Will also let you's know how I go too.

Would you like me to pm you my letter?

[buliej]

There's a good article by the AMA written on 1 March 2009. It is at Baby bonus, Assisted Reproductive Technology a boon for fertility | Australian Medical Association

It compares the 'cost' to the government per child from the baby bonus and from ivf. It shows that ivf babies are a cheaper investment for increasing the birth rate.

It also comments that single transfers of embryos are safer (due to the increased risks from multiple embryo transfer) - and to discourage this financially would be a mistake.

[buliej]

There's a good article by the AMA written on 1 March 2009. It is at Baby bonus, Assisted Reproductive Technology a boon for fertility | Australian Medical Association - given the date of this article it makes me think that this was being talked about behind the scenes for at least a few weeks before ACCESS and others got wind of it.

It compares the 'cost' to the government per child from the baby bonus and from ivf. It shows that ivf babies are a cheaper investment for increasing the birth rate.

It also comments that single transfers of embryos are safer (due to the increased risks from multiple embryo transfer) - and to discourage this financially would be a mistake.

[sazzafrazz]

I sent my email letter to the PM, the opposition leader, the Minister for health and the shadow minister for health along with my local MP, Nick Champion.

This afternoon I recieved a phone call from Nick Champion personally! He thanked me for the letter and said he knew nothing about it. He had talked to "someone high up in government" and they knew little of it themselves!!!!

He then told me that it is all Preemptive talk at the moment and it will probably be like the 2004 talk of age limits for ivf and that it wont even go any further than it has so far. He says sometimes people leak info that is important but often it is just to stir things up and that is the case here??? He will be in contact with the health minister about my letter (I told him I sent the same one there) and to "Leave it with him".

Then he congratulated me on our child and asked if it was a boy or girl, mentioned he could hear her babbling in the background and wished me luck with having number 2.

I thought it was very nice of him to phone me personally and discuss it rather than just send out a standard reply letter from his secretary!

[Cuddlepie]

That's wonderful that he called personally Sazz...I just got a standard email back today, even that, I thought its not bad, because it takes them time to change the name and everything...talking about expecatations..

Also good to hear that it could be just some prep talk, I hope it is....

[briggsy's girl]

that's fantastic Sazz!

[buliej]

Sazz - that's great. I hope it's all talk.

[airline]

Hi, just to let you know, my friend arrived at my house this morning having just heard Meshel on Brisbane's Nova radio station brekky show discussing this whole saga. Turns out she shared what is a very personal thing (she's going through 2nd IVF attempt) in order to put it out there for the listeners. She put this on the brekky show blog:

The Government is set to make numerous cuts when it releases its 2009 Budget next month. Here, I ask that you support all of the women out there, including me, who are on IVF treatment, by writing to the following people and offices and plead with them to not tamper with the Medicare safety net for IVF.

Kevin Rudd
Prime Minister
[email protected]
[email protected]

Wayne Swan
Treasurer
[email protected]

Lindsay Tanner
Minister for Finance
[email protected]

Nicola Roxon
Minister for Health & Ageing
[email protected]

Malcolm Turnbull
Leader of the Opposition
[email protected]

Peter Dutton
Shadow Minister for Health & Ageing
[email protected]

Peter Costello
[email protected]

-Meshel.

She said if anyone's going through it, or knows someone who is/has please help to raise awareness that this is a very bad move. My friend said that she's also trying to get the Treasurer on the radio show - they got the premier, Anna Bligh on last week, - to discuss the terrible oil spill affecting Moreton Island and Sunshine Coast, so it's possible.

It's fantastic that someone who has the ability to communicate with so many people is behind the cause. (she's also an avid animal lover- so I'm a big fan)

[buliej]

I wrote the following to someone in the media - someone who I don't know, but I thought may be sympathetic based on her writings. She had the following reply:
_____
What a wonderful idea for me to write about this. I absolutely will....
I wish you all the very best. I have several friends who are over 40 and trying with IVF and I agree, it?s heart-breaking. Sending you hope!
____

I'm thrilled. I don't want to put her on the spot in case this doesn't work out, but I'll look for her piece and let you know!
_________

Here's my letter:
I am a married, 42 year old, future mother (I hope) who reads your weekend column regularly. I usually share your viewpoint, and, more importantly, always find your pieces interesting and entertaining - a perfect combination. The reason for this email is to see if you would write a weekend piece (or blog) about what it would mean if the government decides to eliminate the coverage of IVF from Medicare and/or not allow the Medicare Safety Net to apply to IVF treatments. These issues are on the table now, and have been written about here: [provided some links] - these contain links to the relevant articles and more facts about the issue in general.

This issue is so important to so many, and I think is not really understood by those who haven't had fertility issues themselves or been close friends or relatives with someone who shared their IVF journey - it's a very personal issue to most. For me, I feel kicked in the stomach whenever I read something like "IVF shouldn't be covered for women over 40". I could not agree more that waiting until your 40 to try to get pregnant is not ideal - and if you ask any woman over 40, they will tell you that they wish that their life had worked out so that they were trying when they were in their 30's. But life doesn't always work out in accordance with the ideal plan.

I am trying at 40+ because I didn't meet my partner until I was 36, going on 37 - and that was meet - it was a long courtship period due to the fact that we lived in different countries, and before having one of us uproot their entire life and leave their family, we wanted to make sure our relationship was right. Do I wish I had found the right person earlier? Absolutely - but I did not. While I was waiting, I worked - worked very hard, as did my husband, and we are fortunate to be successful. Did we pick a career over family, thinking only of success and money - absolutely not. But while waiting for the right person, we forged ahead in our separate careers. And during this time, we paid taxes - some might say an obscene amount of taxes. We have never been and will never be eligible for any government assistance program - no baby bonus, no family tax benefit, etc. I haven't begrudged this - there are people who need this help. However, now the government may take away the one thing we are currently eligible - Medicare assistance with IVF. This is unfair. We each could have had children with the wrong person earlier on - divorcing and having single parent families, relying much more on government assistance. We did not take this path and have no regrets about not taking it. I want to have at least one child with my husband; I want to give my parents and his parents a grandchild; I want to be a mother and experience the joys, excitement, frustrations, sadness and all of the other wonderful things you write about each week.

Please write about this in your column. My perspective on this issue is only one ? there are many more contained in the links above.

Thank you

______________

[airline]

great letter...........well done

[briggsy's girl]

mum messaged me this morning - hers and two other letters were printed in the Courier Mail on Sunday

seems some of the big papers are taking notice...

[Bel]

Buliej, Thanks for the draft letter. I used it to send my letters of PROTEST!!!

Geez this infuriates me...

[buliej]

Can you believe this article from today's paper - The IVF revolution is money badly spent | Herald Sun - there's a short blurb about IVF funding on page 14 of the hard copy of today's SUN. I think it's time for some letters to the editors as well

[Mummawannabe]

I found these - 1 for and 1 against:

IVF mum wages letter war against plan to curb Medicare Safety Net | The Courier-Mail

The IVF revolution is money badly spent | Herald Sun
What a *****! She is obviously one that either doesn't want children or had them accidently or first frickon go! Man that makes me furious!
Make sure you read the comments on the bottom of the article guys - and maybe post a response yourself!