Ms Marie O'Shea:

Not having a PPS number is the first barrier to care because the service is only free of charge to those who have one. That said, I know that the IFPA has absorbed the cost of providing the service to such people in certain circumstances but a lack of a PPS number is definitely a barrier to care.

The number of providers is another issue. In particular, the low number of community providers in some regions of the country is a barrier to care. My Options is a fantastic service but it would appear that there is a lack of awareness about it, as Dr. Duffy covered in her report, among certain cohorts, despite the best efforts of the service. That is a barrier to care because people may then encounter community providers who are not transferring them on to another provider for their care. There are several barriers to care that emerged in the report that are specific to the early termination of pregnancy service.