MSI Australia, the nation’s leading non-profit advocate and provider of abortion and contraception services, has expressed concern about Google’s new health and medicines policy which threatens to limit or stop Australian healthcare providers from advertising their services unless they are “verified” by a US based, for-profit company.
The new Google policy was published in May 2024 without any consultation, ignores existing Australian Government regulations and is seeking to charge legitimate telehealth providers thousands of dollars in fees annually to continue sharing health information about their services.
MSI Australia Managing Director, Greg Johnson, said the new Google policy could hinder access to abortion services for women and pregnant people throughout Australia and, unnecessary and imposed new costs on healthcare providers.
“Google’s new policy is a blatant overreach, imposing unnecessary barriers on trusted healthcare providers like MSI Australia,” he said.
“We’ve been providing safe, high-quality abortion and contraception services across Australia for over 20 years, our services are regulated and inspected by State and Territory Health Departments, and our advertising regulated by Australian Government authorities.
“The new Google policy ignores the comprehensive regulation by Australian authorities and tries to impose new “certification” by an unknown US based for-profit company. This threatens to disrupt access to essential abortion and contraception services, particularly for those in rural regional areas who often rely on telehealth services.
“It is obvious Google’s new policy is not about protecting consumers. It may be about increasing Google’s profits.
“We already have extensive consumer protections in place through Australian regulatory bodies and quality assurance programs. Google’s new policy just adds an expensive, opaque layer of red tape and will ultimately cause harm to people who need care.
“We call on Google to reconsider this misguided policy and work with Australian healthcare providers to develop consumer protections that do not add cost and do not limit access to essential abortion and contraception care.
“We have informed relevant Federal Government ministers and departments of this issue. Google should not be dictating health policy in Australia.”
MSI’s Director of Clinical Excellence, Dr Catriona Melville, sharply criticised Google’s new policy as an unusually overt overstep that creates unnecessary hurdles for safe clinical practices.
“Google’s new policy is not only unfair but also short-sighted. It potentially limits access to telehealth which has become a vital part of Australia’s healthcare system, since the COVID pandemic,” she said.
“This new Google policy risks turning back the clock on progress and limiting access to critical services for women and pregnant people who need to access abortion via telehealth.
“We urge the Australian government to intervene and protect legitimate healthcare providers from this overreach by a foreign tech giant.”
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For further information contact Anna Jabour on 0428 396 391.
MSI Australia is the only national not-for-profit provider of sexual and reproductive health services including permanent and long-acting reversible contraception and abortion care. For more information on our clinic network visit msiaustralia.org.au