Barry Andrews (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)

I will be taking this Adjournment matter on behalf of my colleague, the Minister for Health and Children, Deputy Mary Harney. I thank the Deputy for raising this issue as it provides me with an opportunity to reaffirm the Government's commitment to the provision of family planning services.

Under the provisions of the Health (Family Planning) (Amendment) Act 1992 and the Health (Family Planning) Regulations 1992, the Health Service Executive is obliged to ensure that an equitable, accessible and comprehensive family planning service is provided nationally. The legislation requires health boards, now the Health Service Executive, to make available comprehensive family planning services, either directly or by way of an arrangement with another body. The Department of Health and Children issued guidelines to the health boards in 1995 on the provision of family planning services for all persons in their respective areas who needed such services. These services are provided primarily through general practitioners, non-governmental organisations and, to some extent, maternity hospitals and units.

The Irish Family Planning Association is one of a number of bodies offering a range of services designed to support reproductive choice. The Health Service Executive grant aids the Irish Family Planning Association on an annual basis to supply a quantum of service for this funding. The executive has indicated that arrangements are in place with the Irish Family Planning Association for the provision of family planning services to medical card holders at their centres in Cathal Brugha Street and Tallaght in Dublin as an alternative to the normal GP services.

The level of funding is limited to an agreed allocation discussed at various local service level agreement meetings throughout the year. The HSE has indicated that the IFPA was advised in July of this year that additional funding would not be made available to address expenditure overruns and that the association was requested to review the service to ensure that it remained within its available budget allocation. However, it is understood from the HSE that the IFPA has exceeded its budget in recent years, despite clear agreements in place for funding. Clearly, the HSE and those bodies funded by the HSE must operate within the resources made available to them in any given year. The HSE remains available to work with the Irish Family Planning Association to prioritise service provision within the allocated budget agreed to operate the service.

Family planning services continue to be available free of charge to medical card and GP-only card holders through their GPs. If a GP does not provide family planning services, he or she is obliged to refer a patient to a GP who will provide such services.

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