Ireland extends state-funded IVF to couples with one child

Ireland's health minister has announced that couples experiencing 'secondary' infertility will now be eligible for publicly funded fertility treatment.

Couples in Ireland who already have a child but meet all other access criteria can now be offered one full cycle of IVF or intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). This represents a next step in the ongoing roll-out of the Irish Model of Care for Fertility, which aims to provide a public health-oriented referral pathway for infertility support. Since publicly funded fertility treatment was first introduced in Ireland in late 2023, around 2500 couples have been referred to fertility specialists through the pathway. The change will allow parents with one existing child to access funded treatment if they experience difficulty conceiving after a previous pregnancy, known as 'secondary' infertility.

'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,' said Ireland's health minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill. '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.'

Criteria for accessing the funded pathway were agreed by the Health Service Executive (HSE) and Department of Health following consultation with experts in reproductive medicine. Like many other European countries, they include limits with respect to the prospective birth mother's age and body mass index, as well as the number of children a couple already has. Household income was not a criteria for access, although an earlier announcement suggested that the number of cycles offered per couple may be means-tested (see BioNews 921).

Sligo-Leitrim Deputy Frank Feighan welcomed the announcement and said: 'I am sure there are many couples right across the North West region who face huge financial challenges in their ambition to have a second baby. The current criteria will include couples with an existing child, which is really good news for so many couples across this region and the country.'

The initial Model of Care pathway roll-out established six secondary-care Regional Fertility Hubs located across the country which patients can be referred by their GP. Further roll-out plans are in place under the Health (Assisted Human Reproduction) Act 2024, including plans to establish a regulatory authority to oversee the consistency and standardisation of fertility treatment providers. Minister Carroll MacNeill said this was 'critical', and 'good progress' had been made, as recruitment for a chief executive and board members is currently underway.

Officials within the Department of Justice and the Department of Children are currently drafting a supplementary Bill, which aims to address issues around parentage and citizenship in cases of surrogacy and donor-assisted conception.

The Department of Health confirmed that any further proposed changes to access criteria or services available through publicly funded fertility treatment would require 'extensive consultation' with the HSE and fertility specialists.