Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE) | Oireachtas source

Will the Taoiseach commit to introducing free HRT in the budget? Will he also agree not to limit access according to unjust criteria? All women who need HRT deserve equal access to it regardless of age or income or whether they are in menopause, perimenopause, premature menopause or post-menopause.

At the moment, women in this country are forced to pay the full cost of HRT, which ranges between €30 and €80 per month, themselves. It is a lot of money and it amounts to a discriminatory, so-called pink tax on women. It adds up to between €360 and €960 a year, not including the cost of doctor's appointments. If a woman who is lucky enough to have a well-informed GP who will prescribe HRT does not have a medical card, that is an extra €50 to €65 per appointment but if she is forced to see a specialist to get the care she needs, that means €200 per appointment. Very many working-class women simply cannot afford that. Will the Taoiseach commit to free HRT and to providing midlife health checks for all women free of charge?

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