ࡱ> 576` bjbjss .^^^^^^^rzzzz  rQ   $= h ^   ^^ r r r  ^^ r  r r ^^r  P%.z* r ! 0Q r Y@ Yr r "Y^ <>rr \  \ Q     rrrrrrrrr^^^^^^ Dear Sir/Madam, Thank you for the opportunity to present this submission. My partner and I have been together for over 12 years, and are currently in the process of starting a family. However living in Victoria we are restricted access to fertility services purely as a result of our sexuality. In effect, this meant that our options were limited to the potentially medicallyunsafe route of home-insemination (and we wereunwilling to jeopardise our health, or that of our future baby); or being forced totravel interstateto obtain the samebasic safe fertility treatment which is freely available here in Victoria without question to any heterosexual couple in the same situation. We consequentlycommenced treatment with a Sydney clinic, using donor sperm. We were advised at this point, however, that NSW legislation (unlike Victorian legislation) does not compel the donor to be identified to the child at the age of 18 years. Whilst the donor can agree to such identification at the time of donation, he can change his mind at any time and there is no legal recourse for the child to ever obtain identifying information about the donor. This was completely unacceptable to us, and so we had no choice but to importsperm from an overseassperm bank that guaranteed the release of identifying information in the future. The importation of this sperm cost us many thousands of dollars, and would have been completely unnecessary had we been able to access fertility treatment in Victoria. We then undertook months oftreatment in Sydney, which incurred not only flight costs and taxi fares, but also meant that all the required blood tests / ultrasounds had to be paid for out of pocket as they were done in Victoria rather than at the clinic. It also caused considerable disruption to our work schedules. After treatment was unsuccessful in NSW we were finally diagnosed to bemedically infertile and therefore eligible for treatment here in Victoria. This wasafter incurring costs (in addition to that of the actualfertility treatment)ofnearly $10,000, a burden which no heterosexual Victorian couple in the same situationwould have had to bear. Under Federal Law my partner and I are not considered to be a couple, and therefore have to eachspend $1000 in ordertoreach the Medicare Safety Net. A heterosexual couple only has to spend a total of $1000 between themto obtain the same benefit. This has been a further financial burden for us. We also face discrimination in the areas of taxation and superannuation, despite being completely self sufficient and paying significant amounts of tax (we are both in high income brackets). I am now 7 weeks pregnant. Although my partner and I have been in a committed, essentially de-facto, relationship for over 12 years, and have gone through theroller coaster ride (with all it's stresses)of fertility treatment together,my partner will have no legal standing in relation to our child when it is born. Her name cannot be included on the birth certificate and she will have no power in respect to medical decisions, school excursionsetc. This is manifestly unfair and unjust. It is also potentiallydetrimental to the well-being of our child, and places additional stress on our family. My partner and I, and our unborn child, are recognised and acceptedas a family unit by our families and by our widercommunity. However we routinely face discrimination and disadvantage entrenched in both Federal and State legislation. We are expected to shoulder the sameresponsibilities and obligationsas heterosexual members of our society, butare not granted many ofthe same basic rights and privilegesin return. We look forward to the day when such archaic legislation is removed and equal rights are extended to all, regardless of their sexuality. Sincerely, [Name Withheld]  hFh}h4hyh&9 hFhFJ oY^gdF ,1h. 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