Whether or not women have access to safe termination of pregnancy is a critical issue for women’s health. In Australia, access to termination of pregnancy is governed by a patchwork of state laws. Many states still have abortion listed under nineteenth crimes act, creating the situation in which abortion is illegal unless certain conditions are met. These conditions may be specified in the various acts, or have been determined through case law. They usually relate to the likelihood that continuing the pregnancy will pose a grave threat to the health of the woman, and require certification from two doctors before the woman can legally be offered the procedure.

In the Australian Capital Territory and in Victoria, abortion has been struck from the crimes acts and is now governed by relevant health legislation. Tasmania is the most recent state to consider this move. The Tasmanian government has been running a public consultation on its draft Reproductive Health (Access to Terminations) Bill. Under the new Bill, laws governing termination of pregnancy will be encoded in the Reproductive Health (Access to Terminations) Bill which is a health based Act rather than a criminal one.

As part of the consultation process, the Tasmanian Department of Health and Human Services put out an excellent Information Paper. The need for legal change is summarised in that paper as follows:

The current law is based on laws of the United Kingdom and Ireland from the 1800’s. It fails to recognise: safe medical practices; community standards; and women as competent and conscientious decision makers. There is also uncertainty amongst women and doctors about how the law works in practice. As a result, women may feel fear and stigma for seeking a termination and doctors may be reluctant to provide the service for fear of criminal sanctions. As it stands, the law impedes the delivery of termination services which, in turn, negatively affects the health and wellbeing outcomes of Tasmanian women.

 I strongly support the proposed Reproductive Health (Access to Terminations) Bill. There are many reasons why it is appropriate for the legal framework for termination of pregnancy to be governed by health legislation rather than criminal legislation. Access to safe and affordable termination of pregnancy is an essential part of women’s health care. While there are several factors that can decrease the rates of unplanned pregnancies, such as provision of contraceptives, sex education and fostering of gender equity, it is impossible to ensure that contraception is fail-proof, or that all pregnancies are both wanted and can be carried to term. Thus there is an ineliminable need for access to terminations. This need is independent of the provision of legal termination services. International research shows that rates of termination do not vary with the legal status of the procedure – that is restrictive termination laws do not lead to lower rates of termination but rather lead to worse health outcomes for women as they are unable to access safe and effective services.[1] Therefore provision of safe and legal terminations should be a central plank of women’s health services.

This Bill is appropriate because it recognizes that women themselves are best placed to make decisions about continuing or terminating a pregnancy. At present in Tasmania, women seeking terminations are dependent upon two doctors finding that continuing the pregnancy would pose a greater risk to the woman’s physical or mental health than terminating the pregnancy. This robs women of their autonomy and contains an implicit assumption that women are not capable of making this decision for themselves. This assumption is outdated and sexist. The decision either to terminate a pregnancy or to bear a child has significant consequences for the woman concerned. As such, she is the only one who should have the right to weigh up the various considerations and come to a decision. Putting this decision in the hands of others means that women lose control over a central aspect of their lives.

Submissions to the Department of Health on the draft Bill will be made public in due course. Time will show what support the Bill receives, and whether the legislation passes.