The Wire

The Howard Government wants to save money by limiting the number of IVF cycles women can claim from Medicare to three per year for women younger than 42, and three in total for women older than 42. It’s estimated this will save the Government around $7 million. Questions have been raised about the Government’s spending priorities in the coming Budget. For instance, in Adelaide today, a campaign worth $5 million was launched to get people eating fruit and vegetables. Professor Gab Kovacs, Medical Director of IVF at Monash University, says cutting IVF funding will have a big effect on women but little financial gain. South Australian Health Minister, Lea Stevens, justifies spending $5 million on a fruit and vegetable campaign, and two mothers at the launch assess whether it is money well spent.