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Teaser for the upcoming documentary on homebirth in Australia - Face Of Birth

The proposed requirement for midwives to have “collaborative arrangements” with “one or more medical practitioners” before being eligible for professional indemnity insurance or Medicare rebates, leads to a range of problems:

MORE than 400 angry women have gathered at Kevin Rudd’s Brisbane electorate office to protest changes to maternity care laws.

The women are upset by changes that will give doctotrs the right to veto home births with a midwife in attendance.

AMA President, Dr Andrew Pesce, said today that the AMA welcomes the Government’s decision to amend the Health Legislation Amendment (Midwives and Nurse Practitioners) Bill 2009 to specify a formal requirement that midwives and nurse practitioners must work in collaboration with medical practitioners.

A range of very serious consequences would flow if these arrangements were restricted to privately practicing doctors. Consequences could include:

= No new midwifery models in public hospitals.

= No private midwifery practice.

= No homebirth care from midwives in private practice.

= Practice midwives in private obstetricians rooms could be the only viable model of private practice or Medicare-funded midwifery.

I promise this is the last hurrah for the year, but it is important. Please don’t feel deflated (I know it is exceedingly hard) we are fighting against such a very powerful lobby but together we will win, maybe not tomorrow but ultimately and before the next election.

As we get them we are adding the speeches here for those who weren’t able to hear. All will be here in the next few days.

How to get to Sydney from Canberra

Little Jonah Sharpe was born in the comfort of his Currimundi home 10 weeks ago, but changes in legislation will soon make it illegal for midwives to assist with home births.

The intersection of the Commonwealth legislation to regulate and accredit all health professionals and that of Medicare access for Midwives will eliminate the ability for a woman to contract a private registered midwife providing homebirth. This is due to an inability to secure professional indemnity insurance and an unwillingness by Minister Roxon to provide homebirth midwives with the same protection as all other health professionals.