Kin Fertility recently commissioned a survey with over 1000 Australian men and women to better understand the landscape of contraception in Australia. What they found was a clear gender disparity when it came to the expectations surrounding contraception costs as well as barriers to access.
Kin Fertility‘s mission has always been to empower women to take charge of their reproductive health through education and access.
And, upon discovering that approximately 81% of Australian women between the ages of 16-49 use some form of contraception, Kin Fertility felt it was high time for a deeper study to be conducted.
The Climate of Contraception report reveals the true nature of the contraceptive landscape in Australia and the physical, mental, and emotional costs of this.
ACCESS
It was found that women face far more hurdles than men when trying to access contraception. To even gain access to their preferred contraceptive, 73% of women said that they need to see a doctor. In contrast, 70% of men are able to access their preferred contraceptive method at a supermarket.
For many women, simply accessing a GP can pose significant challenges, whether they live in a regional area and therefore lack medical services that are close by, struggle to find time for appointments in their busy lives, endure lengthy wait times, face high medical expenses, or encounter the unavailability of appointments altogether. One woman from NSW said, “It’s a nightmare trying to get an appointment and then sit there while they fill the script”.
COST
The report also unveiled insights into whether Australians believe there is a cost disparity for contraception between men and women. Around 71% of Australian women believe that the spend for contraception between genders is not equal, compared with 44% of Australian men that believe it is.
Over two-thirds of women think that it is unfair that they have to pay more for contraception than men as opposed to almost half of men believing that it’s fair for women to spend more to access and use contraception.
Most methods of contraception, including birth control pills, are not free in Australia yet have been made to be more accessible and cost-friendly in countries like the UK and the US which begs the question as to what Australia will do to keep up with this progression.
SOLUTION
While there is no one quick fix to contraceptive access and cost, Kin Fertility was interested to observe the methods by which Australians thought these barriers could be alleviated:
- 62% of those surveyed think that more male contraceptive options would help
- 54% think that a partner should share the cost of contraception
- 62% believe that the Australian government should subsidise contraception methods and medication through Medicare.
They also got a General Practitioner’s opinion on the matter. Dr. Kirsty Wallace-Hor expressed the following sentiment “Applying to have a new medicine listed on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme is a long and expensive process. There is little incentive for pharmaceutical companies that produce contraceptives to make a submission – an oral contraceptive pill hasn’t been added in over 25 years.
If the Australian government made this process easier, it would help to have a massive impact on the accessibility for many people and serve as a step forward in resolving the healthcare gender disparity.”
Additionally, The Climate of Contraception report found that 81.5% of women surveyed take on the cost of contraception alone, regardless of their relationship status.
To help minimise the financial and mental burden associated with contraceptive access, Kin has a contraception membership. This offers women an easier way of accessing contraception with direct delivery and automatic refills and supports women who are concerned about their financial status by offering unlimited access to practitioner consults.
“We genuinely believe that having safe access to contraception is a woman’s right. We hope that the more we’re able to shine a light on the issues that persist in accessing contraception, the more we can break down barriers to access,” says Nicole Liu, Founder of Kin Fertility.
About Kin Fertility
Kin Fertility is dedicated to empowering women and their reproductive health journeys by providing accessible healthcare on their terms. By providing trusted resources to inform suitable decision-making based on your needs, Kin aims to enhance women’s daily routines with small changes but big impact.
