A member of parliament in South Australia is lobbying to expand government-funded disability programs so that disabled people can receive services from sex workers just as they would receive physical therapy or mental health services, Adelaide Now reports.
Kelly Vincent, a member of Parliament from the Dignity for Disability Party, has argued that some government funds that are already set aside to provide services for disabled people should be reallocated towards sex therapy, saying that a number of studies on existing programs in Scandinavian countries prove that sexual services have great benefits for the disabled.
"For those people who are feeling frustrated and alienated and alone and sad because they can't access this experience, and for those people for whom the services of a sex worker could make a genuine huge, positive difference to their lives, in a private, intimate manner, then I don't see why that can't be allowed," Vincent told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
But before any government-funded sex services can exist, New South Wales would have to decriminalize sex work, according to the network. The idea has spurred controversy in parliament as members debate a bill introduced by Labor Party member Steph Key, which would decriminalize sex work and authorize approved individuals to receive government-funded sex therapy from trained professionals.
In a certain sense, some disabled Australians are already receiving government-funded sexual services in part, Ninemsn reports. The government of New South Wales funds transportation for disabled individuals, and some choose to be transported to and from bordellos.
But Vincent hopes that the disabled will be able to receive direct government funding for sexual services, and plans to vigorously campaign for the cause as parliament debates the Steph Key bill.
Proponents of the bill hope parliament members can be persuaded in part by a new documentary by New South Wales sex worker Rachel Wotton, which debuted in Adelaide last night. In Scarlet Road, Wotton details her experience providing sexual services to the disabled.
See the trailer for the documentary below: