A new bill is making its way through the NSW Parliament that could make accessibility to abortions easier in the state.
Greens MLC Dr Amanda Cohn has introduced the Abortion Law Reform Amendment (Health Care Access) Bill 2025 to address barriers to abortion care.
If Parliament passes the Bill, it will mean Nurse Practitioners and endorsed midwives will be able to prescribe the medical abortion pill MS-2 Step (also known as RU486) for pregnancies up to nine weeks gestation. This change will align NSW with Queensland, Western Australia, and the ACT.
The private member’s bill will ensure abortion services are provided across the state within a reasonable distance of residents’ homes. Where doctors have a conscientious objection, they will be compelled to refer patients to abortion providers.
The Bill follows NSW Health’s review of the Abortion Law Reform Act, which found there are barriers to access terminations, “.. particularly for women living in regional, rural or remote parts of NSW, Aboriginal women, culturally and linguistically diverse women and women who are socially and/or financially disadvantaged”.
Something the Executive Director of the Illawarra Women’s Health Centre, Sally Stevenson, has seen.
“Abortion was decriminalised in NSW six years ago, but it has made little difference to the accessibility of abortion care in the Illawarra. Women needing to terminate a pregnancy are still faced with significant barriers, including cost, availability of service providers, requirements for GP referrals, scans and blood testing, geographical access, as well as the ongoing judgment and stigma surrounding abortions.
“NSW Health’s review of the Abortion Law Reform highlighted these areas, and this Private Member’s Bill goes a long way towards addressing them.
“Abortion should be a non-negotiable health service for all women in NSW; changing the law is a step forward, but political commitment is required to ensure our public hospitals cannot opt-out from offering these services. Abortion is a medical procedure, not a social issue. Like all health care – it is a human right.
“Abortion should always be a woman’s choice – women should not be at the mercy of a misogynist medical system that denies them the right to bodily autonomy, or individuals who think they have the cultural or religious right to determine a woman’s future simply because of their own archaic views support the state having control over a woman’s bodies.
“Abortion services need to be fully funded, accessible and non-judgmental if we are ever to reach gender equality in Australia. This, of course, includes the Illawarra and Wollongong Public Hospital, where access to abortion care remains limited.
The Illawarra Women’s Health Centre believes all women have a right to affordable and safe pregnancy termination. The Centre provides information and advice on pregnancy options and has staff who can offer non-directive pregnancy counselling.
Our website also provides information on local services that offer medical and surgical terminations.
A surgical abortion costs $740 in Wollongong with a $160 Medicare rebate.
You can support the Abortion Law Reform Amendment (Health Care Access) Bill 2025 by contacting your MP, sharing your experiences and letting them know this Bill is a must.
Who to send your email to:
- NSW Minister for Health and Member for Keira Ryan Park: keira@parliament.nsw.gov.au
- Member for Shellharbour, Anna Watson: shellharbour@parliament.nsw.gov.au
- NSW Planning Minister and Member for Wollongong, Paul Scully: wollongong@parliament.nsw.gov.au
- Member for Kiama, Gareth Ward: kiama@parliament.nsw.gov.au
- Federal Member for Cunningham, Alison Byrnes: alison.byrnes.mp@aph.gov.au
- Federal Member for Whitlam, Stephen Jones: stephen.jones.mp@aph.gov.au
- Labor’s candidate for Whitlam, Carol Berry: carol.berry@nswlabor.org.au
- Federal Member for Gilmore, Fiona Phillips: fiona.phillips.mp@aph.gov.au
