Mary Fitzpatrick (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State and commend Senator O'Reilly on bringing forward this private members' motion. I am very happy to support it along with my colleagues in Fianna Fáil. I am delighted the Minister of State is here to take the motion. I suspect she can empathise not just with the motion but with every menopausal woman out there in the world. All of us are fighting to put a smile on our faces every day and to get up and face the world.

It is a challenging place and life is not fair, but it is certainly not fair for women. This is one of the hidden challenges most women battle with in silence. It is very isolating and it is physically and mentally crippling. This motion today also talks about the economic disadvantage it inflicts on women.I support the motion and I want Deputy Butler, as the Minister of State, to go back to the Government and say that this House is actively urging and demanding it to provide free HRT to all women who require it in our country. We are a rich and developed nation and a very privileged country but our privilege should extend to providing women with this treatment. It is not a panacea or a magic wand. It does not work for all women and it is not a solution for all women going through menopause. Even for those for whom it does work, it can involve trial and error. It does not always work the first time and you have to get the exact dosage right. It is also costly every time you visit your GP. It is really expensive. Women who are lucky enough to have a medical card can go to their GPs but, if you do not have a medical card, you have to pay the €50, €60, €70 or whatever it is to visit your GP, if you can get an appointment.

You can spend a lot of time and money investigating what is wrong with you when it actually happens. You can be sent from Billy to Bob and from pillar to post with different doctors, none of whom have expertise in menopause because - guess what? - it is not their specialty because they are men and it does not affect them. What they do is study and get qualified in the disease they treat. It is like saying you are not going to treat a teenage diabetic child because you do not get puberty. Some specialists actually say that menopause is not their specialty. Every medical professional who is going to treat patients needs to look at the patient first and not just at the illness. In looking at the patient, they need to recognise that certain female patients of a certain biological age will most likely be going through the menopause. If they were to keep that in mind, it might help with accelerating the treatment they are trying to deliver to their patients.

However, the only thing the Government can do is to ease the financial burden so I really do hope that the Minister of State and the Government can support the motion and build on the amazing work this Government has done for female healthcare. I refer to free contraception and associated GP visits, the action on period poverty and the awareness programme and listening programme around menopause. All of those are great and positive supports for women but we need to go further. We and the Government have not done enough yet although a great start has been made. I really hope the Government will be able to support this initiative. Well done to Senator Pauline O'Reilly.