Minister for Health announces expansion eligibility of access criteria for state-funded Assisted Human Reproduction treatments
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From: Department of Health
- Published on: 30 June 2025
- Last updated on: 30 June 2025
The Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll MacNeill has announced updated access criteria for state-funded assisted human reproduction treatment. From today, couples with one existing child in their relationship, and who meet all other current access criteria, can now access publicly-funded AHR treatment including one full cycle of in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) or intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI).
Minister Carroll MacNeill said:
"Since we introduced publicly-funded Assisted Human Reproduction (AHR) treatment in September 2023, close to 2,500 couples have been referred by Reproductive Specialist Consultants, and many have achieved their dream of starting a family.
"Fertility issues can be devastating, and I am conscious that secondary infertility is a significant issue, with many people facing huge financial and emotional difficulties in their attempts to have a second child. I have listened to the requests from parents in this difficult situation, and I am pleased that we are now in a position to make this potentially life-changing treatment available to more people.
"With effect from June 30, 2025, the current access criteria will be extended to include couples with one existing child in their relationship."
An extensive programme of work is ongoing in order to progress the legislation necessary to underpin AHR and to establish a regulatory authority. The Health (Assisted Human Reproduction) Act 2024 was signed into law by the President in July 2024. Its purpose is to regulate fertility clinics providing treatment such as in-vitro fertilisation and ensure that assisted human reproduction (AHR) practices and related areas of research are conducted in a more consistent and standardised way and with the necessary oversight.
Work is also well underway on a supplementary Bill to deal with issues such as parentage and citizenship in respect of surrogacy arrangements as well as donor-assisted conception.
Minister Carroll MacNeill said:
"We are making significant progress in relation to AHR legislation, and formal drafting of the Health (Assisted Human Reproduction) (Amendment) Bill is nearing completion. Officials at my department are working closely with officials at the Department of Justice and the Department of Children to finalise the Bill. Intensive work is underway to publish this legislation as soon as is practical.
"One critical piece in the AHR jigsaw is the establishment of a Regulatory Authority. Good progress has been made in relation to the establishment of the Assisted Human Reproduction Regulatory Authority. The recent campaign for appointment to State Boards has now closed and suitable candidates have been identified. I hope to be in a position to make appointments to the Board very soon. The recruitment campaign for the Chief Executive Officer of the AHRRA is also underway, and we will soon reach another important milestone when we announce the successful candidate for this role."
Notes
Public Fertility Treatment
The Model of Care for Fertility was developed by the Department of Health in conjunction with the Health Service Executive’s (HSE’s) National Women & Infants Health Programme (NWIHP) to ensure that fertility-related issues are addressed through the public health service at the lowest level of clinical intervention necessary.
This Model of Care comprises three elements, starting in primary care (i.e., GPs) and extending into secondary care (i.e., six Regional Fertility Hubs located across the country) and, where necessary, AHR treatment (e.g., IVF (in-vitro fertilisation) and ICSI (intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection)), with patients being referred onwards through structured pathways.
Phase One of the roll-out of the Model of Care involved the establishment, at secondary care level, of six Regional Fertility Hubs within maternity networks covering the entire country. This means that a significant proportion of individuals presenting with fertility-related issues are managed at this level of intervention. Patients are referred by their GPs to their local Regional Fertility Hub, which provides a range of treatments and interventions. These Hubs have been fully operational for a number of years now.
Phase Two of the roll-out of the Model of Care relates to the introduction of AHR treatment, including IVF, provided through the public health service at tertiary level.
Appropriate funding has been made available to support access to AHR treatment via HSE approved private providers. As well as IVF and ICSI, this allocation is also being used to provide IUI (intrauterine insemination), which can, for certain groups of people, be a potentially effective, yet less complex and less intrusive form of treatment.
Referrals for publicly-funded, privately-provided AHR treatment commenced in September 2023. Criteria prospective patients should meet in order to access fully funded AHR services were agreed by the department and the HSE and subsequently approved by Government in July 2023.
The criteria were agreed following consultation with experts in the field of reproductive medicine and include limits in respect of the age of the intending birth mother, body mass index (BMI) and the number of children a couple already have. They are very much in keeping with those applied in other jurisdictions, even though in most European countries, for instance, such treatments are only partially funded and require often significant out-of-pocket payments by patients.
General information on public fertility services and on publicly funded AHR Treatment is available on the HSE website.
Close to 2,500 couples have been referred to date by a Reproductive Specialist Consultant for AHR treatment following extensive investigations and/or secondary level treatment within the HSE run Regional Fertility Hubs. The Hubs have successfully and directly managed thousands more patients presenting with fertility issues who have been referred by their GP. Not all couples experiencing fertility challenges actually require such advanced and invasive interventions as IVF.
Following on from the expansion of the access criteria in relation to ‘secondary infertility’, decisions in respect of any further proposed changes to the access criteria and/or the range of services provided through the publicly-funded AHR treatment initiative require extensive consultation between Department of Health, the HSE and with relevant specialists in the field of reproductive medicine.