From today, every woman in Ireland who is aged between 17 and 25 will be able to avail of free contraception - even without a medical card.
The Health (Miscellaneous Provisions) (No. 2) Act 2022, which provides for the free contraception scheme, was signed into law by President Michael D Higgins back in July.
The new scheme has been brought in as a way to shoulder the financial burden teens and those in their early twenties face with contraception.
A statement from the government earlier this year acknowledged that: “Costs for the Pill and similar repeat prescription contraceptives can therefore be estimated at €65-100 every six months, and the initial costs of long-acting reversible contraception, including consultation, purchase of the device and fitting, typically range from €250-€320. If the costs of removal are also included, the costs rise to €340-€470.”
Up until now, medical card holders across the country have had these costs covered, so this change will widen the net for those eligible for support. It will see thousands of young people without a card saving hundreds of euro on fees and prescriptions.
Under the new scheme, the full cost of prescription contraception will be covered, including:
- necessary consultations with medical professionals to discuss suitable contraception options with individual patients and to enable prescription of same
- fitting and/or removal of various types of long-acting reversible contraception (LARCs) plus any necessary checks, by medical professionals certified to fit/remove same
- providing the wide range of contraceptive options currently available to GMS (medical) card holders, which will also be available through this scheme, including contraceptive injections, implants, IUS and IUDs (coils), the contraceptive patch and ring, and various forms of oral contraceptive pill, including emergency contraception
All women within the eligible age bracket will need to show is their PPS number to ensure the scheme is not mistreated.
Speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland, Dr Ciara McCarthy, the GP clinical lead in women's health for the Irish College of General Practitioners and the HSE, said the scheme will also cover emergency contraception - the morning after pill - which can be provided by a GP or pharmacist.
She said the scheme will cover the cost of your prescription as well as your initial GP consultation.
She told RTE: "This includes prescriptions for shorter acting items like the contraceptive pill, as well as the long acting reversible contraceptives. These are things that people would know as contraceptive implants or hormonal coils. The fitting and removal of these items would also be covered as well, as any checkups or follow-up care that would be needed."
Speaking about the change to law back in July, Health Minister Stephen Donnelly said: "Free contraception is a cost-effective measure, reducing both crisis pregnancy and termination of pregnancy rates.
“Given that the costs of prescription contraception are typically faced by women, the scheme will impact positively on gender equity, reducing costs for women, but also benefitting their partners and families, starting with women aged 17-25.
"In the context of current cost-of-living challenges, I am delighted to be able to introduce these 2 significant measures aimed at alleviating cost pressures for individuals and families when seeking to access healthcare."
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