Public hospitals in Victoria would not be allowed to stop doctors from providing abortions under a bill being introduced to state parliament this week by the crossbench MP Fiona Patten.
The legislation follows the overturning of the landmark Roe v Wade decision in the US in June, and comes with just four more sitting weeks before Victorians head to the polls in November.
The bill will seek to strengthen the rights of Victorians to access abortions and contraceptive services by making sure they were available at every hospital that accepts government money, including denominational hospitals.
Patten said the public health system was “mistreating those who fund it”.
“Publicly funded hospitals and other health institutions have no right to refuse these legally enshrined rights that a woman has control over her body and reproductive health,” Patten said.
“Religion is a blessing to many amid the mysteries and vagaries of existence, but imposed religious faith has no place in the public health system.”
The bill would not change the right of individual medical professionals to refuse to perform abortions on religious grounds.
Under the current laws, pregnant people can access abortions up to 24 weeks in Victoria. Beyond 24 weeks, a medical practitioner can provide an abortion if another medical practitioner agrees that it is appropriate.
A doctor with a conscientious objection to abortion is required to refer any pregnant person inquiring about termination information or services to another doctor who does not object.
Hospitals that receive public money, including those with religious affiliations, are not required to offer abortion services.
The majority of abortions in Victoria are performed in dedicated private clinics and private hospitals, which can present a barrier to access for some.
Patten said institutions should not be able to claim “conscientious objection” and that the bill would ensure public hospitals were not able to prevent a doctor from performing legal abortion procedures.
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, last month refused to discuss reforms to ensure abortion was available in public hospitals across the country in the wake of the US decision, instead insisting it was a matter for states.
“We don’t control the health system. The states control the health system,” he said.
“We’re fortunate that in Australia we don’t have the sort of divisive debate that has occurred in the US that we’ve seen playing out with a Supreme Court decision on Roe v Wade.”
Patten, the leader of the Reason party, said the response from Albanese was “disappointing”.
“This is a man who only recently decried the appalling decision of the US Supreme Court ... to return abortion law to state governments, many of which immediately stamped on women’s rights,” Patten said.
“Well, my legislation is a state response. It’s based on first principles and can and should be supported across the political spectrum.”
Earlier this year the Victorian premier, Daniel Andrews, said abortions were “matters … between a woman and her doctor” after MP Bernie Finn posted on Facebook about “praying” for abortion to be banned in Australia.
The Victorian parliament returns on Tuesday after a six-week winter break.
Patten will do her second reading of the bill on Wednesday before it is debated in a fortnight.
