Catherine Byrne (Dublin South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

On behalf of the Minister for Health, Deputy Simon Harris, I thank the Senator for raising this matter in the Seanad. The Minister is unavoidably absent as he in the Dáil Chamber dealing with Priority Questions and asked me to come in his place.

The cost of contraception has often been cited as a factor in unintended pregnancies. The Oireachtas Joint Committee on the Eighth Amendment of the Constitution recommended the following: "the introduction of a scheme for the provision of the most effective method of contraception, free of charge and having regard to personal circumstances, to all people who wish to avail of them within the State". There are insufficient data for the significance of the cost of the use of contraception. We know from the Irish contraception and crisis pregnancy study 2010 that other important issues, besides cost, influence access and decisions on contraception. Almost half of the women surveyed for the study said contraception had been used at the time of their most recent crisis pregnancy. Aggregate population data for contraceptive use in Ireland are not available. However, the health Ireland survey 2016 indicated that 46% of respondents used no contraception. Usage was highest among the group of people aged between 17 and 24 years and declined with each age group, with significant numbers in each group using no contraception. Clearly, there are other important issues besides cost in whether people choose to use contraception when pregnancy is not desired. Work in the United Kingdom suggests access to reliable contraception is only one of the measures needed to achieve a reduction in the number of unintended pregnancies. They include relationships and sexuality education, timely access to contraception and information and engagement with appropriate health services.

Contraception is widely and easily accessible in Ireland. A comprehensive range of prescription hormonal contraception is available through the community drugs schemes, including long acting reversible contraceptives. Condoms are not reimbursed but are widely available in retail outlets. Additionally, post-coital contraception is available over the counter in pharmacies and free for medical card holders.

The main cost of obtaining contraception relates to medical care such as consultations, follow-up visits and the fitting and removal of devices. However, 44% of the population have free GP services, either through the medical card or the GP visit card.

I will come back to some of the other issues raised by the Senator.