PM pledges $36m for postnatal health: We’ve got your back
New parents will get a free check-up for the warning signs of postnatal depression, as part of a female-friendly Mother’s Day cash splash from the Liberals at their campaign launch today. SEE WHAT ELSE THEY ARE PROMISING.
NSW
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New parents will get a free check-up for the warning signs of post-natal depression, with Prime Minister Scott Morrison saying the emotional load of caring for babies is a cause close to his heart.
“Too many parents have suffered in silence but we’ve got their backs,” Mr Morrison told The Sunday Telegraph, just a week after his wife Jen revealed she was treated for what she described as mild depression when the couple’s two daughters were young.
“Rolling out this check to every new mum, dad and bub will be a key part of the other health check-ups new families go through,” Mr Morrison said, foreshadowing his announcement at today’s campaign launch of a $36 million check-up package as part of a female-friendly Mother’s Day cash splash.
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“This check should be an expected and important part of parental health care as much as vaccinations,” Mr Morrison said.
More than one in seven new mums and up to one in 10 new dads experience post-natal depression.
The Australian Breastfeeding Association will get $4 million to support new mothers in the battle to promote breastfeeding, which experts say is better for babies’ development, including preventing allergies and infections.
Another $5 million will be invested in medical research focused on pregnancy, postpartum and intrapartum health, mental health and reproductive health.
An extra $10 million will fund compression garments for breast cancer survivors to control one of the cancer’s most common legacies, post-operative swelling. Control garments can cost patients up to $550 a year.
The party’s launch will be dominated by the announcement of a $4 billion, 6km toll road and tunnel project connecting Melbourne’s east and west which is expected to be used by between 80,000 and 100,000 cars per day. The party is facing a possible loss of up to 10 seats in Victoria.
No former Liberal prime ministers are expected to attend the Coalition’s official launch, with organisers bracing for the risk of protests.
Yesterday, Liberal sources said Tony Abbott would spend the day in his Sydney electorate. Malcolm Turnbull is in the US.
John Howard, who has been campaigning in recent weeks, is also expected to skip the launch after returning from London on Friday.
The absence of recent Liberal PMs threatens to overshadow the launch and remind voters of the party’s horror run of leadership turmoil. It comes one week after Labor brought together former PMs Julia Gillard, Kevin Rudd and Paul Keating for its launch.
Instead Mr Morrison will be joined by wife Jenny, daughters Lily and Abbey, and his mother Marion.
The number of women representing the Liberal Party in the lower house is at risk of dropping as low as five after the election.
The Coalition has run a low-spending, small-target campaign focused on drawing attention to Labor’s big-bucks ambitious policy platform, and today Mr Morrison will continue the theme with relatively modest commitments, with the exception of the Victorian roads projects.
Originally published as PM pledges $36m for postnatal health: We’ve got your back
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