The facts on major pregnancy-related and family changes
Wayne Swan delivered his second budget in Canberra last night. Low and middle income families, old-age pensioners and carers are the big winners, while high earning families will see their health and family benefits reduced. Private obstetrician and IVF rebates have been drastically cut, yet positive steps have been made in regards to the introduction of paid maternity leave (albeit it delayed, taxed, and means tested) and new funding for midwifery services that will benefit rural women.
How will your family be affected?
Essential Baby has put together the facts on the major pregnancy-related and family changes. We'd love to know what you think, please let us know your thoughts on the changes and how it will affect you here.
Means Tested Parental Leave to arrive in 2011.
Long overdue for working families, the first scheme of its kind in Australia will arrive in 18 months. Here are the facts:
- Paid parental leave will be introduced from January 1, 2011 at the federal minimum wage, currently $543.78 a week, for up to 18 weeks.
- Parents who receive this payment will not be eligible for the Baby Bonus, except in cases of multiple births where parents will not receive the Baby Bonus for only the first child.
- Parental leave payments will be taxable and will have an impact on the parents' entitlement to family assistance payments, but will not be deemed income for income support payments.
- Parents who choose not to receive the paid parental leave or who do not qualify will still receive the Baby Bonus and other family payments.
- Primary carers will be eligible for paid parental leave if they earn less than $150,000 in the full financial year prior to the birth or adoption of a child, have worked at least 330 hours over the 10 months preceding the birth or adoption of a child and have worked continuously with one or more employers for at least 10 of the 13 months before the expected date of birth or adoption.
This essentially means a high-income woman with a low income partner would miss out on the payment, while a low income woman with a billionaire husband will receive it. Is this right - is the scheme fair? Tell us what you think of this issue here.
Baby Bonus and Family Tax Benefits
The top income limit for family payments will be frozen at combined income of $150,000 until 2012. The payments themselves will continue to be indexed, though the government will bring Family Tax Benefit A into line with the other payments by linking it to the consumer price index rather than the couple pension rate.
Medicare safety net for IVF and private obstetrician fees
In a move that has already seen the Rudd Government being accused of betraying infertile couples (whom they supported in Opposition ) the Federal budget has sliced Medicare funding for IVF treatments. These cuts have gone far beyond what was expected and we now have a situation where IVF may only be available for the rich. The Government will introduce a cap on Medicare benefits payable under the Extended Medicare Safety Net for a range of items with excessive fees including all obstetric items and some ultrasound items related to pregnancy.
From January 1, 2010, once a patient reaches the safety net threshold of $1111.60 in out-of-pocket medical fees, or $555.70 for those on low incomes, safety net payments will be capped at:
- $200 for the planning and management of a pregnancy, including being booked into a hospital for delivery
- $30 for a pregnancy consultation, including blood, urine and weight checks
- $550 for the planning and management of an IVF pregnancy
One IVF cycle can cost $6000, and many obstetrician's pregnancy management fee sits around the $4000-$6000 mark, the rebate reduction will make these options largely unaffordable for most Australian women. In many cases, successful IVF can take several rounds of treatment.
Tell us what you think of this issue here.
Wins for midwifery services
A new 24-hour, seven days a week helpline will also be established to provide antenatal, birthing and postnatal maternity advice and information to women, partners and families during the antenatal period and up to 12 months following the birth of a child.
The Government will also provide $120.5 million over four years for the introduction of Medicare supported midwifery service for women during pregnancy, birthing and postnatal maternity care. This is a real win for midwifery services and great for individual women's choices. These new changes will allow midwives to work as private practitioners, provide services subsidised by the Medical Benefits Schedule and prescribe medications subsidised under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Schedule.
An expansion in the Medical Specialist Outreach Assistance Program to provide integrated outreach maternity service teams for women in under serviced areas will assist women in rural and remote areas. The program will see an expanded team to include general practitioners, obstetricians, midwives and other health professionals such as paediatricians and Aboriginal health workers.
Funding will be provided for the professional development of midwives and for general practitioners to undertake additional training to become GP obstetricians or GP anaesthetists.
Child care rebate untouched
Perhaps the predicted outrage from working families helped keep the widely used Child Care rebate untouched. Rumours of the rebate becoming means-tested were unfounded. It will remain at a 50% rebate on fees capped at $7200 per child, per year.
Private health insurance rebate removed
High-income earners will lose the rebates on private health insurance rebates and get an increase in the Medicare Levy Surcharge. This means:
The rebate will be means tested once an individual earns more than $75,001 and a couple earns more than $150,001, and will decrease on a sliding scale, until $120,001 for singles and $240,001 for couples, at which point it cuts out 100%.
The Medicare Levy Surcharge aimed at those people who do not take out private health insurance will climb from 1 per cent to 1.25 or 1.5 per cent depending on a person's income.
Discuss the budget and how it will affect your family in our News & Politics forum.
