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20th February 2025
12:42pm GMT
The Minister for Health has stressed that they will find a way to roll out the Free Hormone Replacement Therapy Scheme.
HRT is used to help relieve the symptoms of menopause and perimenopause.
The national plan was due to be rolled out in January but has since faced delays.
Speaking about the ongoing issue in the Dáil, Minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill explained why the national plan was delayed.
She confirmed that the Irish Pharmacy Union and the Department of Health have been meeting to discuss a solution.
"The government set aside money to pay for the products but not the dispensing fee for pharmacists.
"I have met the pharmaceutical union. I am engaging with it to see if there is something we can do but the reality is we do not have the budget to carry the dispensing fees," the Minister for Health stated.
"So if a woman is getting two HRT products, for example, she is paying two dispensing fees which might be €7, €8, €9 or €10 per product.
"We intend to cover the cost of the medication. Were we to extend the budgetary allowance for that I would have to take that from somewhere else and that would mean we could not do something else."
"I am trying to find a resolution. Please allow me a couple of weeks to allow me to do that," she asked.
"I hope the pharmaceutical union will come back with something we can work on."
The Free HRT Scheme was welcomed at first, but many people have spoken out against the scheme as it only covers medication.
It does not cover GP visits which are needed to obtain a prescription. Campaigners have called on the Government to include the consultation coverage in the scheme.
It is understood that women could save €840 annually when the scheme is eventually rolled out.
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