Simon Harris urged to implement abortion care changes 'now'

National Women’s Council director Orla O'Connor said 'serious gaps' remain in abortion care. Picture: Gareth Chaney/Collins

Service providers, civil society organisations, and academics are calling for “urgent” action from Taoiseach Simon Harris on the implementation of recommended changes to abortion care.

In an open letter to Mr Harris, the group warns that patients are being denied timely reproductive healthcare and, in many cases, are being forced to travel abroad.

The letter, whose signatories include the National Women’s Council (NWC), the Irish Family Planning Association, Amnesty International Ireland, and the Irish Council for Civil Liberties, hits out at a lack of action on a review of abortion care published in April 2023.

“Significant barriers to equitable and accessible abortion services remain,” says the letter, which is also signed by academics at Trinity College Dublin, Maynooth University, and Lancaster University.

The coalition cites barriers including ongoing criminalisation, the mandatory three-day wait, lack of safe access zones, and uneven geographical coverage of services.

'Narrow criteria'

It is also highly critical of the narrow, rigid legal criteria for abortion access after 12 weeks, including the 28-day clause for fatal foetal anomalies.

NWC director Orla O’Connor said “serious gaps” remain in abortion care, resulting in “distress” for many people.

"We are calling on the Government to implement the recommendations of the review, without further delay, as well as all necessary legislative changes, to ensure safe, timely, and equitable access to abortion,” she said.

Mary Favier, of Doctors for Choice and Start abortion providers group, said the three-day wait is a significant impediment to timely care and that criminalisation continues to stigmatise both providers and women.

"Community provision must be supported by a primary care lead focusing on evaluation of the service and targeted interventions to improve access," said Dr Favier. 

"What needs to change has been well documented in the review. It is time for political action and that time is now.” 

The letter also states that recommendations in the review have a robust evidence base, rooted in the lived experiences of women who have accessed abortion services in Ireland.

"The onus is now on Government, who commissioned this review, to act on these recommendations and ensure Ireland’s reproductive healthcare system is aligned with international best practice and can properly meet the needs of all women and pregnant people."