What's the value of women's health in Australia?
From a first period to menopause, women deserve care from a specialist who knows them, listens and is there when it matters.
Right now, the cost of specialist care is under the spotlight. You may have seen headlines suggesting specialists are greedy. The real story is how little Medicare values women's specialist care across their lives, from gynaecology to pregnancy and birth.
This page gives an overview of the value and costs of specialist O&G care in Australia.
If you believe that Australian women deserve to choose the style of care they would prefer for their healthcare, and that the care should be accessible and affordable, please let your local Federal member know that its important to you. Scroll down for details on how to contact your Parliamentary representative and send them your thoughts.
Specialist Care Across a Woman's Life
Specialist obstetricians and gynaecologists care for women at every stage of life. That includes heavy or painful periods, endometriosis and pelvic pain, fertility concerns, miscarriage, prolapse, menopause and suspected gynaecological cancers, as well as pregnancy and birth.
For many of these conditions, timing is important. In Australia it takes an average of six to eight years from the first symptoms of endometriosis to a diagnosis. Long delays can affect a woman's education, work and mental health. For conditions that affect fertility, delay can permanently narrow her options.
Menopause is another stage where specialist care makes a real difference. Hot flushes, poor sleep, heavy or irregular bleeding, mood changes and bone health concerns can affect a woman's work, relationships and wellbeing for years. A specialist assessment looks at the whole picture, rules out other causes of abnormal bleeding and tailors treatment to her needs, including menopausal hormone therapy where it is appropriate.
Pregnancy: A Clear Example of the Pricing Gap
The gap between what care costs and what Medicare pays affects every part of women's health. This is most clearly see in pregnancy care.
Government sets the Medicare Schedule Fee for each service and the rebate patients receive. Doctors set their own fees. The difference between the two is the out-of-pocket cost.
When a specialist obstetrician manages a pregnancy, the Pregnancy Management Fee has a Medicare Schedule Fee of $446.15. Women receive a Medicare rebate of $379.25.
The Pregnancy Management Fee is meant to cover the care that happens outside individual appointments: early risk assessment, arranging and reviewing tests, adjusting the care plan as things change and working with your GP and other clinicians, as well as being available whenever you need help.
Spread across 28 weeks of around-the-clock care, the Medicare Schedule Fee works out at about $2.28 a day. That is less than half the price of a cup of coffee.
What it Actually Costs to Provide Pregnancy Care
Most private obstetricians run small businesses. NASOG's 2025 national survey of private obstetricians found:
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Practice running costs of $350,000 to $450,000 a year for each obstetrician, covering rent, staff, equipment and billing.
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Medical indemnity insurance of $50,000 to more than $100,000 a year for each obstetrician.
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Availability around the clock through pregnancy and for six weeks after the birth, much of which attracts no separate Medicare payment at all.
Many practices also employ midwives, physiotherapists, lactation consultants and other clinicians so that women receive coordinated care in one place.
Can this care really be worth only $2.28 per day?
Why the Gap Keeps Growing
Medicare rebates have been frozen or indexed below inflation for years, while the cost of running a practice has climbed. Even the Grattan Institute, which has called for tougher action on specialist fees, acknowledges that Medicare rebates have fallen in real terms.
When the rebate stays low and costs rise, families make up the difference. Private obstetricians report that families typically pay around $4,800 to $5,000 out of pocket for a full pregnancy. Because the Pregnancy Management Fee is charged outside hospital, private health insurance cannot contribute to it, even for women with top-level cover.
"Greedy Specialists"? The Full Picture
Recent reports have described specialist fees as "runaway" and proposed penalising specialists whose fees are more than three times the Medicare Schedule Fee. That comparison assumes the Schedule Fee reflects what care actually costs. For women's specialist care it has not done so for decades. Pregnancy care is the starkest example.
The out-of-pocket gap is not a measure of a doctor's profit. It measures how far Medicare has fallen behind the real cost of safe, continuous specialist care. Penalising doctors for that gap would not make care any cheaper to provide. It risks fewer specialists, longer waits and less choice for women.
NASOG supports clear fees and informed financial consent. Every woman should know what her care will cost before she commits to it. We also want out-of-pocket costs to come down and have proposed funding options to Government to improve access and affordability for families.
Affordable Private Gynaecology Shortens Public Waiting Lists
Public and private hospitals draw on the same limited pool of specialist gynaecologists. Private hospitals already manage around 70% of elective women's procedures.
In gynaecology, the costs that most affect access sit outside hospital: specialist consultations for complex conditions such as endometriosis, pelvic pain and heavy menstrual bleeding, pelvic imaging and procedures done in the rooms.
When a woman cannot afford those costs, she joins the queue for a public gynaecology clinic. Official figures only start counting once she is placed on a waiting list for surgery. The wait from her GP referral to her first specialist appointment, often the longest wait of all, is largely invisible.
Every woman who can afford to see a private gynaecologist is one less woman waiting in the public system. Keeping private care affordable shortens waits for everyone, including women who rely on public hospitals.
The Importance of Valuing Women's Health
In maternity care, about one in three Australian women would like to have continuity of care with a private obstetrician, but many find that they will not be able to afford the out-of-pocket costs, even with a private health insurance policy.
Valuing women's health properly at a policy level means funding the care women choose, from their first gynaecology appointment to pregnancy, birth and menopause, at a level that reflects what it takes to provide it safely.
A woman's choice of specialist should depend on her needs, not on how far Medicare has fallen behind.
Have Your Say
The future of Medicare and specialist fees is being discussed now. Your local MP needs to hear what this care means to you and your family. It will take just a few minutes and could make the world of difference to the future of women's healthcare.
Step 1
Click below to find the contact details of your local member on the Parliament of Australia website
Step 2
We have drafted an email template for you to use. The most powerful messages are personal, so please add a sentence or two about your own experience. You can share as much or as little as you like.
Step 3
Copy the text into your own email to send. Make sure that you include your name and address so your MPs office knows you are a constituent.
Share Your Story
Has specialist O&G care made a difference for you, your baby or your family? We would love to hear about it. Your story helps decision-makers understand what is at stake.