Labor's free abortion pledge caught in political battle

Key points

• The Victorian government has promised to invest $30 million over four years to remove out-of-pocket costs for abortion care if re-elected in November. Health Minister Ingrid Stitt says the move aims to end a so-called postcode lottery.
• The Greens and Animal Justice Party welcomed the policy but said it came too late, and the Greens accused Labor of playing politics. Labor rejected that claim.
• Under the plan, participating providers would be paid to deliver abortion care before 16 weeks of pregnancy, and the medical abortion window would extend to 10 weeks.