From Janie Nottingham:
I am writing to inform you of the Maternity Coalition campain underway at present and to develop links with many of you and detail how you can become involved.
The MC website has been updated and I urge you to please go and have a look at it
http://www.maternitycoalition.org.au
Maternity Coalition believes that the implementation of the review could see a system that ranges from providing women with every choice, to a system that restricts women even further than they are restricted today. We have particular concerns about the Government's support and funding of private midwifery care and midwife-led care in public hospitals. The government has made it clear that homebirth will not be supported at this time.
Maternity Coalition has sent a letter to the Health Minister and is awaiting a response.
Our campaign asks the Government to listen and respond to women and to enable women to have all options available.
Letter writing campaign:
MC has developed a sample letter to assist when drafting your own. This is not on the web site yet but will be uploaded shortly, it is a page version of the one already distributed by Bruce Teakle - click here.
Please send a letter to Nicola Roxon and to your local federal MP (you can find your local federal member through the AEC website). Please do not cc your letters, write two separate ones (this ensures responses!).
Nicola Roxon
Minister for Health and Ageing
Parliament House
Canberra ACT 2600
Visit your Federal MP:
It is valuable to also meet with your local federal MP, make sure you see them and not just one of their staff.
Join our postcard campaign:
MC has developed a postcard campaign and has printed 10,000 copies, all of which will be sent to Minister Roxon's office. We need your help! Order your bundle of postcards to distribute amongst your friends and family. Simply attach a stamp and write your name and address (and a short message if you choose), pop it in the mail, and your postcard will join the thousands of others making their way to Nicola Roxon's office, all carrying our message - Every Woman, Every Choice. Order your postcards by emailing postcards@maternitycoalition.org.au We really need to have a state wide discussion about this and develop our approach, I am the chief distributor at present and would love a representative from each branch to come forward to liase with me to ensure we do this part well. Again this would be discussed in detail on a conference call hook up for all interested Victorians.
Organise or attend an event on our National Day of Unity and Action for Birth Reform:
A national day of action will be held on July 4, 2009. For further information, or to register your local event email campaign@maternitycoalition.org.au.
Support homebirth as an option for Australian women:
We also ask that if you feel strongly about homebirth as an option, you also support the Homebirth Australia campaign.
What else are we up to?
We are making links to other birth-related organisations and are developing a joint letter to be signed by all organisations to go to the Government. If you can help in any way with this it would be greatly appreciated, it would also be timely for us to do this within Victoria.
This is a time for women to unite to support all choices being available in birth.
Thank you for supporting this campaign.
Please stay in contact and ask for any info you require.
For Women For Midwives
Janie Nottingham
Acting Vic MC President
janie.nottingham@gmail.com
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