Week unclouded. Protests, weight loss injections and miscarriage leave
News can be overwhelming to follow. Important news bites can get lost amongst all the hard and breaking news. Here are a couple of the headlines from this week and beyond that impact women.
Miscarriage leave would save the country money
Photo by Anna Shvets on Pexels
If miscarriage leave is introduced, Malta will save money as this measure would reduce productivity losses, according to an economist.
Economist Jonathan Spiteri was commissioned, by the Social Dialogue Parliamentary Secretariat, to evaluate the impact of miscarriage leave on employee productivity to inform an ongoing consultation process to introduce miscarriage leave.
Times of Malta reported how Jonathan’s research showed that, based on an estimated 300 reported miscarriages per year, the productivity loss currently stands at €3.7 million when factoring in the loss of productivity of the birthing parent alone. This could increase to a productivity loss of €12.3 million if calculated on 1,000 miscarriages annually, which is believed to be the real figure that factors in the unreported cases of pregnancy loss.
Women protest for control over their reproductive rights
Photo by Voice for Choice (Facebook)
Women, dressed in the traditional Maltese għonnella, protested against centuries of reproductive control during an event organised by the Voice for Choice coalition to mark the International Day of Action for Women’s Health.
The protest, that took the form of a procession held in Valletta, featured activists dressed in black and traditional attire to symbolise the weight of Malta’s "restrictive abortion laws" and the "historical oppression of women". Abortion is illegal in Malta, although changes were approved in 2023 that allow for termination if a woman's life is in danger.
Weight loss injection to be offered by government to tackle obesity
Photo by Andres Ayrton on Pexels
Weight loss injections - that supress appetite - will be offered to people with certain health conditions by government within the next year in order to address obesity rates.
Health Minister Jo Etienne Abela confirmed, to Times of Malta, that injections would be prescribed in specific cases, targeting patients with a Body Mass Index (BMI) of over 35 and a related health condition.
Obesity is defined by BMI, which is a measure of body weight relative to height. For adults, a BMI of 30 or higher is classified as obese. A BMI between 25 and 29.9 is considered overweight, but not obese.
Obesity is recognised as a major public health concern in Malta. The country consistently ranks among the countries with the highest obesity rates in Europe, affecting both adults and children.
Share your news
Do you have some women-related news you want to share? Or perhaps an idea or topic you feel deserves to be spoken about and ‘unclouded’? Or an inspiring story to share?
If so you can comment below or send an email on hello@womanunclouded.com so we can discuss how to get your voice heard.