Luke Gosling (Solomon, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Labor's women's health package is driving more choice, lower costs and better care for women and girls right across our country. I'm particularly proud of our investment in endometriosis and pelvic pain clinics. The Pelvic Pain and Endometriosis Clinic at Northside Health in Coconut Grove, Darwin, is led by Dr Danielle Stewart and opened in September 2023. The multidisciplinary team there at Northside Health provide Territory women with access to the care that they need close to home.

Endometriosis affects one in seven Australian women and has a devastating impact on the daily lives of sufferers. Women face an average seven-year delay in diagnosis, which can have a devastating effect on their daily lives. Pelvic pain is similarly complex and debilitating, with broader social and economic impacts. It is estimated to cost the Australian economy $6 billion annually.

I acknowledge the former member for Canberra Gai Brodtmann and former member for Forrest Nola Marino, both of whom fought for years to raise awareness of endometriosis and the debilitating impact it has on women across Australia. Listening to their contributions in this place inspired me, a few years ago now, to consider how we can better support women suffering from endometriosis in Darwin, in Palmerston and in the Northern Territory.

Through this journey I had the privilege of meeting Libby Schoch, an amazing Territorian and a sufferer of endo. Libby and I held several events in Darwin and Palmerston, including roundtables, to hear directly from Territory women about their experiences and the challenges that they faced living with endometriosis but also to let them know that we were listening, that we would act and that they weren't alone. At those events, Territory women described their debilitating pain, the lack of community awareness around endometriosis and the way it impacted their lives—how it impacted their ability to participate in family activities, to exercise, to take part in work; the crippling financial impact of living with endo; the difficulty of accessing pain relief; and how they had even been accused of being drug seekers and the impacts this had on their mental and emotional wellbeing. Clearly, something needed to be done, and that's why we delivered the Pelvic Pain and Endometriosis Clinic at Northside Health in 2023. That represented the end of a community engagement process in my electorate that I was proud to play a role in with Libby Schoch and with others in the Top End.

Our federal Labor government is building an Australia-wide support system that previously did not exist. We now have a national network of 33 endometriosis and pelvic pain clinics across the country. These are improving access in regional and metropolitan communities. We are funding the development of Australia's first national clinical guidelines for perimenopause and menopause, ensuring consistent, national, evidence based care for women no matter where they live. We are delivering the reform that women were denied for far too long: practical, affordable, evidence based care that improves women's lives.

Since introducing the women's health package, more than 800,000 women have accessed over three million cheaper PBS prescriptions for contraceptives, for menopausal hormone therapies and for endometriosis treatments. This includes, but is not limited to, the first new contraceptive pill listed on the PBS in more than 30 years and the first new menopausal hormone therapies listed in over 20 years. As of January 2026, PBS scripts are just $25, and they are $7.70 for concession card holders, and these are the lowest medicine prices since 2004, over 20 years, giving Australian women more cost-of-living relief with the care that they need.

We're also making Medicare work better for women by delivering the services and specialist care which women have waited too long for. Medicare funded menopause health assessments began on 1 July last year and have already been accessed by more than 100,000 women, giving them the dedicated time and support they deserve at a critical stage in their lives. New Medicare items and higher rebates— (Time expired)

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