As private maternity services across Australia face significant instability and the already stretched public system absorbs increasing demand, the need for systemic reform is undeniable. Gender bias embedded within funding and insurance structures is contributing to crushing cost increases, closures of private maternity units, and ultimately, rapidly diminishing choices for pregnant people and their families.
In response to this escalating crisis, the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RANZCOG, the College) convened ‘Collaborating for Women’s Choice: Sustainability for Private Maternity’, on 17 November, a Roundtable meeting to urgently propose solutions. This pivotal meeting brought together the Honourable Rebecca White MP, Assistant Minister for Assistant Minister for Health and Aged Care, consumers with lived experience, service providers, private hospitals, government, policymakers, and other key stakeholders to develop solutions that protect true choice for women in their birth journeys.
As a result, RANZCOG has developed several recommendations for urgent reform to sustain and restore the long-term viability of private maternity care and choice for women and their families.
These include:
Solution 1 – Remove gender bias in the system.
- Reform MBS obstetric item rebates to reflect true cost and eliminate gender bias
- Remove restrictive caps on Extended Medicare Safety Net Arrangements to support consumers seeking maternity care
Solution 2 – Improve affordability of private insurance.
Solution 3 – Adopt collaborative models of multidisciplinary team-based maternity care.
Solution 4 – Ensure sustainable funding for maternity services in private hospitals.
Solution 5 – Secure and enhance an adequate workforce, including specialist obstetricians, paediatricians, anaesthetists, as well as midwives, nurses and the wider range of allied health professions that support maternity.
Solution 6 – Work with women’s community and consumer groups to co-design maternity information initiatives.
A comprehensive overview of the discussions and proposed solutions is detailed in the College’s Private Practice Roundtable Report.
This work builds on RANZCOG’s inaugural roundtable held in 2024, Preserving Women’s Choice and the Future of Private Obstetrics & Gynaecology, which focused on private obstetrics and gynaecology in Australia.
The College sincerely thanks all participants in the roundtable for their valuable contributions. RANZCOG is committed to working with key collaborators to progress the report’s recommendations and ensure a viable future for Australia’s private maternity care system.
Media enquiries
Bec McPhee
Head of Advocacy & Communications
bmcphee@ranzcog.edu.au
+61 413 258 166
