Minister Pippa Hackett has welcomed significant progress on women’s health in 2022.
The Minister for Landuse and Biodiversity stated: “I’m proud to be part of a Government that is delivering significant progress for women’s health. The improvement of Women’s health is a matter close to my heart and, thanks to the Women’s Health Action Plan and Fund, I’m happy to see significant progress in 2022.”
“With the introduction of free contraception, the roll out of five menopause care clinics and a menopause awareness campaign, the development of a National Framework for Endometriosis Care in Ireland and the roll out of a network of one-stop Ambulatory Gynaecology Clinics, this Government has made massive strides toward improving healthcare for women at all stages of their life. I’m looking forward to even more progress being made in 2023,” said Minister Hackett.
The Women’s Health Action Plan 2022-2023 is a fully funded strategy for improving women’s health in Ireland. Budget 2022 ring-fenced €31m in funding for new Developments for Women’s Health. To date, the Women’s Health Action Fund has supported significant advancements in a range of priority areas.
Reviewing the work done on Women’s Health in 2022, Minister for Health, Stephen Donnelly said:
“The Women’s Health Action Plan and Fund launched in March 2022 have made a significant difference to women’s healthcare in 2022, addressing all stages of a woman’s life. This plan, with dedicated funding, is an innovative approach to women’s health care and is successfully tackling some difficult challenges. I am confident this plan has had a significant positive impact in 2022 and I look forward to building on this progress in 2023.”
Budget 2023 has allocated funding for:
Expansion of the Free Contraception Scheme to cover 16–30-year-olds
Elimination of VAT on period products
€10 million to provide access to publicly funded IVF treatment
Elimination of VAT on HRT for menopause
Funding for the phased expansion of the complex endometriosis service in Cork
€0.9 million investment in the development of Women’s Health Hubs, for the holistic provision of women’s healthcare
Additional funding of €100,000, for the period dignity support programme which initially involved supports for Travellers and Roma, will extend this programme to more groups in need
Funding for 21st ambulatory gynaecology clinic in additional to the 12 open and the 8 clinics in development
Funding for Phase Two of the roll-out of the Model of Care for Fertility, including commencing the development of the first National Advanced AHR Centre, delivering IVF and ICSI through a wholly public clinic, scheduled to open in 2024
