Great news! We got the issue into parliament!!! They mistakenly attributed the petition to Sids and Kids (most likely due to the accompanying letter of support from them) Date Thursday, 13 October 2016 Source Senate Page 1852 Proof No Questioner Responder Speaker Bilyk, Sen Catryna Question No. Senator BILYK (Tasmania—Deputy Opposition Whip in the Senate) (17:51): by leave—I present to the Senate a nonconforming petition from SIDS and Kids. It has been to the whips meeting and agreed to. There are over 5,000 signatures in support of a Medicare rebate payable for services provided by an international board-certified lactation consultant. It has now been brought to the notice of the appropriate Senate committee - the Community Affairs Committee (http://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate/Community_Affairs). Admittedly I am no expert on parliamentary proceeding but I am told that "a committee may seek a reference from the Senate on the issues contained in a petition (see Brief Guide No. 13—Referring Matters to Committees), or may use the petition as evidence in a related inquiry. Senators sometimes refer to petitions in debate in the Senate. The full text of each petition received is printed in Hansard (attached page 1 and included text from page 2 in this update - above)" So at the moment the next step needs to be taken by the relevant committee- which in this instance I believe it will be the Community Affairs Committee. This committee can be tracked to keep up to date for those interested. If anyone out there with political experience wants to come forward with guidance we would appreciate any tips for making sure this issue doesnt get swept under the rug. Better breastfeeding support remains a possibility!!