Government funding for IVF a 'first step', says Stephen Donnelly

Under the plans, eligible couples must have no living children from the existing relationship and must include at least one partner with no living child and must not have had more than one cycle of IVF previously. 

A Government-funded scheme to pay for IVF for couples who cannot conceive is a "first step", the health minister has said.

Stephen Donnelly on Tuesday received Cabinet backing for the plan, but couples will be limited to one cycle of treatment. Women over the age of 41 and above a certain body mass index (BMI) will not be eligible.