Australia – ‘A postcode lottery’: The 17 areas with no abortion access in Victoria

By Rachel Eddie
August 6, 2023

Hundreds of women in rural and regional Victoria have no access to surgical and medical terminations close to where they live, forcing some to travel for hours to get an abortion.

Red tape to prescribe the abortion pill will be removed from this month, but reproductive healthcare providers say the change will not end the “postcode lottery” many women are faced with.

Continued: https://www.theage.com.au/politics/victoria/a-postcode-lottery-the-17-areas-with-no-abortion-access-in-victoria-20230726-p5drd3.html


Victoria’s Anti-Abortion Doctors Risk Breaking Laws, Study Finds

Victoria's Anti-Abortion Doctors Risk Breaking Laws, Study Finds
Doctors who object to abortion stand accused of failing their legal obligations to women seeking termination.

Jessica Leahy
February 1, 2019

Abortion was decriminalised Victoria in 2008 but since then health practitioners have held on to the right to conscientiously object to carrying out abortions so long as they refer women on to a health expert who does not object.

But, according to a University of Melbourne-led study, some of the state’s anti-abortion professionals are breaking the law by subjecting women to tactical delays that flout Section 8 of the Abortion Law Reform Act 2008.

Continued: https://www.whimn.com.au/talk/victorias-antiabortion-doctors-risk-breaking-laws-study-finds/news-story/6ee271bc3d8b8932b7f96504fe9f2cc5


Victorian doctors who object to abortion ‘attempting to delay or deny access’

Victorian doctors who object to abortion 'attempting to delay or deny access'
Study reveals failure of legal protections to ensure women’s access to terminations

Melissa Davey
Thu 31 Jan 2019

Victorian doctors who conscientiously object to abortion are breaking the law by failing to refer women on to practitioners who will perform the procedure, leading to some women having abortions later than necessary or having the baby despite wanting a termination.

This was the finding from a study led by associate professor Louise Keogh at the University of Melbourne, who examined whether mandatory referral, introduced in Victoria during abortion law reforms in 2008, was making healthcare more accessible to women.

Continued: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jan/31/victorian-doctors-who-object-to-abortion-attempting-to-delay-or-deny-access


Fact check: Will Queensland’s proposed abortion laws allow unrestricted access after 22 weeks?

Fact check: Will Queensland's proposed abortion laws allow unrestricted access after 22 weeks?
Oct 3, 2018

The claim

Protestors have marched through the streets of Brisbane voicing their opposition to proposed changes to abortion laws in Queensland. Among them was Nationals senator for Queensland Matt Canavan, a cabinet minister, who addressed the crowd and spoke to reporters at the march.

"[The proposed changes] would be some of the most radical and extreme legislation of abortions in the world, and it would allow, effectively … unrestricted abortions beyond 22 weeks," Senator Canavan said.

Will the new laws, if passed, allow unrestricted access to abortion after 22 weeks? RMIT ABC Fact Check takes a look.

Continued: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-10-04/fact-check-queensland-abortion-laws-unrestricted-access/10264402


Australia – Lucky we Victorian women already had this sorted … right?

Lucky we Victorian women already had this sorted ... right?

By Miki Perkins
10 June 2018

What a fierce lot these Irish women are. It was stirring to see them stride through airports, suitcases in tow, flocking home to vote.

And what a relief to see their country shrug off the weight of history and vote decisively for women’s reproductive rights.

Whew, lucky we Victorian women already had this sorted, right?

Continued: https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/lucky-we-victorian-women-already-had-this-sorted-right-20180608-p4zkbi.html