Three regional abortion clinics in Queensland set to close in August

Private abortion clinic closures in regional locations means many Queensland women will have to travel hundreds of kilometres for care.

Three private abortion clinics in regional Queensland will close in August because they have become “financially unviable”.

Marie Stopes Australia said it would shut its centres in Rockhampton, Townsville and Southport.

The abortion provider cited “significant Covid financial losses and ongoing challenges in providing regional healthcare” as reasons for the closures.

Children by Choice CEO Daile Kelleher said the closure would increase the barriers towards women living in regional Queensland being able to access timely and compassionate abortion care.

Marie Stopes Australia’s Townsville abortion clinic will close in August.

Ms Kelleher said Queensland would be left with just five private abortion clinics – three in Brisbane, one in Cairns and another in Nambour.

“It’s going to potentially mean that a lot of people that previously were able to access terminations close to their communities are now going to have to travel to Brisbane or Cairns,” she said.

“Rural and regional people are not unused to travelling for healthcare but if you’ve got caring responsibilities, or you’re under coercive control … and you can’t be away for a couple of days, then travelling to Brisbane is just going to mean it’s even more inaccessible.

“Having to travel hundreds of kilometres to Brisbane creates huge barriers for people.”

An estimated 10-12,000 Queensland women access abortion services annually.

Children by Choice counsels about 1800 people a year, on average.

“What we’ve found from our data is that about 90 per cent of abortions happen in the private sector and that could include medication abortions under nine weeks’ (gestation) through general practitioners,” Ms Kelleher said.

She is seeking an urgent meeting with Health Minister Yvette D’Ath and Attorney-General Shannon Fentiman to discuss the Marie Stope closures.

Queensland Health Minister Yvette D’Ath. Photo: Dan Peled.

Marie Stope Australia general manager Jamal Hakim said shutting the three regional clinics was “a tough decision”.

He said the coronavirus pandemic had increased costs, making it more difficult to deliver services.

For example, the provider had to charter flights for doctors to Townsville and Rockhampton to keep services going when fewer commercial flights were available during travel restrictions last year.

“The costs of doing business, in general, have gone up,” Mr Hakim said.

He said the three closing Marie Stopes clinics in Queensland collectively cared for between 5-6000 people a year, providing a range of reproductive healthcare services, including surgical and medical abortions, contraception, vasectomies and checks for sexually transmitted diseases.

Queensland Health Minister Yvette D’Ath said the clinics were closing amid changes in the way people were accessing abortion care.

“What we’re seeing is a significant decline in surgical intervention terminations,” she said.

“They’re able, for example, to go to a pharmacy and get the morning after pill, or go to a GP and get a prescription to terminate the pregnancy.

“It’s not as intrusive and so they’re not going to Marie Stopes as much anymore.

“The demand is just not there to sustain a physical shop front.”

But Ms Kelleher said Children by Choice was worried the Marie Stopes decision to restrict its provision of surgical terminations to Brisbane would most heavily impact on those already facing barriers to accessing healthcare including women experiencing domestic violence, First Nations people, those with a multicultural background and women with disabilities.