Free HRT treatments to start on June 1 following six-month delay
Jennifer Carroll MacNeill: 'I have written to all community pharmacies today asking that they support and facilitate the women in their communities to access State-funded HRT products and medicines.' Picture: Moya Nolan
State-funded HRT will begin for women on June 1 and the Government will cover the dispensing fee, health minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill has announced.
The funded hormone replacement therapy was announced as part of last October’s budget and was initially promised for January 1.
However, the scheme has been beset by delays.
It is designed to give patients access to HRT products and medicines at no charge.
Ms Carroll MacNeill, said: “I have written to all community pharmacies today asking that they support and facilitate the women in their communities to access State-funded HRT products and medicines.
“In doing so, I am committed to supporting each participating pharmacy by paying them a €5 dispensing fee per HRT medicine/product dispensed to all eligible patients, including those existing patients under the GMS/DPS schemes and for all other patients prescribed HRT and a €1,000 once-off grant to every participating community pharmacy."
She said setting the commencement date for June 1 would allow participating pharmacies time to be ready to facilitate the free HRT scheme to their customers.
The HSE is on Tuesday due to notify all community pharmacies of the reimbursement arrangements, the process for participation and the mechanism to receive the €1,000 grant.
"An information campaign will commence in the coming days, providing further information for patients. The prescription charges for medical card holders in relation to HRT medicines and products on the reimbursement list would also be abolished," the department said.
"The Department of Health regrets that an agreed implementation of this measure could not be agreed with the Irish Pharmacy Union (IPU), despite engagement over many months."
It said the minister offered the IPU the option of:
- A €5 dispensing fee per HRT medicine/product dispensed to all eligible patients, including those existing patients under the GMS/DPS schemes and all other patients prescribed HRT to be funded from the combined allocation for 2025 for pharmacy and HRT, and a €1,000 once-off grant to every participating community pharmacy;
- Or a €3,000 once-off grant to every participating community pharmacy. Community pharmacies could then have continued to apply dispensing fees as before, having regard to existing arrangements.
"These offers did not lead to an agreement with the IPU," the department said.
At the end of last month, pharmacists said they had still not been given a full list of medications to be covered under the scheme.
This was needed due to shortages of some types of HRT products. It can mean women frequently need alternatives to what is on their prescriptions.
The Irish Pharmacy Union also said a tested IT system had not been developed that would allow pharmacists to record who has used the scheme and individual pharmacies to be paid by the State.
