"Greens Will Act to Help Midwives Media Release"

Read what the Greens have to say about “the collaboration determination”

Greens Will Act to Help Midwives Media Release | Spokesperson Rachel Siewert Saturday 24th July 2010, 10:01am

The Australian Greens said today that midwives are furious with the Federal Government over recently released regulations governing the way they practice. Greens spokesperson for Health, Senator Rachel Siewert has committed to immediate action on the regulations upon the resumption of Parliament.

“As soon as the Senate next sits, the Greens will move a motion to disallow the collaborative arrangements regulation,” Senator Rachel Siewert said today.

“This regulation puts doctors in total control of midwives and makes a mockery of the Government's $120 million “Medicare for Midwives” reforms,” said Senator Siewert.

“The government released its definition of collaborative arrangements for midwives out of parliamentary session, and it’s easy to see why- their approach is unacceptable and demeaning to midwives and they didn't want to draw attention to them during the last week of sitting.

“Midwives are concerned that this determination effectively means that if a doctor does not agree with a woman’s choice of midwife, they do not have to participate and will withdraw their collaboration.“Midwives will have to work under the control of a doctor in order to access Medicare payments.

They must have a signed agreement with a doctor who agrees to the way they are providing care or have all elements of care planning acknowledged at every step.“We’re speaking about trained and regulated professionals who have been insulted by the reforms put forward.

“If the government does not trust regulation of health professionals to ensure that practitioners are working safely, it is a very sad indictment of their own health care system.

“The government has failed to deliver anything like the promises they made for midwifery reform and at the same time have given power of veto of one medical profession over another.

"Women are outraged that they have been told that Medicare rebates will be available for private midwifery care and now the reality is that this will be limited to those employed in an obstetric model which many women have said over and over again that they don't want," concluded Senator Siewert