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

I am taking this matter on behalf of the Minister for Health, Deputy Harris. I thank Senator Kelleher for her insight and for giving me the opportunity to provide clarification.

On Friday, 25 May 2018, the Government held a referendum arising from the Thirty-sixth Amendment of the Constitution Act 2018. The people of Ireland voted overwhelmingly in favour of deleting Article 40.3.3° in its entirety and substituting an article in the Constitution, the object and effect of which is to articulate clearly the principle that laws may be enacted by the Oireachtas to provide for the regulation of termination of pregnancy. The Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) Act 2018 was passed by the Houses of the Oireachtas on 13 December 2018 and signed into law by the President on 20 December 2018. The legislation provides for a termination to be carried out in cases where there is a risk to the life or of serious harm to the health of the pregnant woman, where there is a risk to the life or of serious harm to the health of the pregnant woman in an emergency, where there is a condition present that is likely to lead to the death of the foetus either before or within 28 days of birth and without restriction up to 12 weeks of pregnancy.

A public information campaign, My Options, commenced upon the enactment of the legislation. Services for termination of pregnancy have been offered from 1 January 2019 and there is regular ongoing engagement between the Department of Health and the Health Service Executive, HSE, to facilitate the smooth running of the service and to resolve any issues that may arise. As of 1 March 2019, 290 GPs nationally had signed contracts to provide termination of pregnancy services in the community and terminations up to 12 weeks of pregnancy are being provided in ten maternity hospitals or units in the following hospital groups: Ireland East hospital group - National Maternity Hospital, Holles Street and Midland Regional Hospital Mullingar; RSI hospital group - Rotunda Hospital and Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Drogheda; Dublin Midlands hospital group - Coombe Women and Infants University Hospital; Saolta hospital group - University Hospital Galway and Mayo University Hospital; University of Limerick Hospitals - University Maternity Hospital Limerick; and South/South West hospital group - Cork University Maternity Hospital and University Hospital Waterford. A woman requiring a termination at one of these maternity hospitals or units must be referred by a GP.

While most terminations up to nine weeks of pregnancy will take place in the community, some may need to take place in a maternity hospital or unit for medical reasons. However, all terminations between nine and 12 weeks of pregnancy must take place in a maternity hospital or unit. When the service for termination of pregnancy was first introduced, an issue arose whereby some maternity hospitals or units were operating an 11-week cut-off for terminations in early pregnancy. However, this issue has been resolved. Terminations of pregnancy carried out in maternity hospitals or units can be either medical or surgical. The type of termination carried out is a matter for the relevant medical practitioner and the woman concerned.