Budget commits €47m to women's health

Women aged 17-25 are to get free contraception. File picture

Budget 2022 includes a €47m investment in women's health, with a special focus on reproductive health.

Among the changes is free contraception for women aged 17-25, plans to tackle period poverty and funding for the National Maternity Strategy.

The funding will cover the cost of consultations and prescription contraception, as well as fitting and removing long-lasting reversible contraception. 

Most of the overall funding (€31m) will go to the Action Plan in Women’s Health for 2022. This includes €10m for a Women’s Health Fund set up in 2020 under the Women’s Health Taskforce, which sits in the Department of Health. 

Priority areas for this taskforce last year included gynaecology, menopause, mental health and physical activity.

Additional funding will be allocated to maternity, obstetrics, gynaecology services and perinatal genetics under the action plan. 

Separately, €16m is allocated to women’s health through budgets for cancer, mental health and social inclusion including funding to develop a perinatal model of care.

Health Minister Stephen Donnelly welcomed the “dedicated women’s health initiatives” saying: “We will further expand specialist endometriosis services in Tallaght Hospital and Cork University Hospital. We’re also providing additional funding to our Sexual Assault Treatment Units." 

Boost for menopause care

Referring to a planned boost for menopause care, he said services would be provided for women who cannot access care with a GP.  Additional specialist referral menopause clinics in Dublin, Limerick, Galway and Cork would be provided, he said. 

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The commitment to tackle period poverty includes programmes to support women in the Roma and Traveller communities as well as homeless women. The Department of Health will also work with local authorities to have period products in libraries and civic centres.

Green Party TD Neasa Hourigan said women’s health “needed and deserved” to be a priority in this budget. 

“We will see funding for free contraception for women between 17 and 25. I consider this the first step towards rolling out free contraception for all women," she said.

The Irish Pharmacy Union welcomed contraception funding and urged it to be made available without prescription through pharmacies. 

The Irish College of General Practitioners described free contraception as “an essential component” of women’s healthcare.