The HSE have currently opened three out of the six new Menopause/HRT clinics promised to be operating by the end of the year.

A focus on women’s healthcare provided at local level is welcome and promotion of standardised care for women is needed. One of the new Menopause/HRT clinics has opened in Lucan at the Ballyowen Primary Care Centre, and women are contacting Gino Kenny TD in relation to the price list for the clinic. The price list is in excess of what women paid for their normal GP service- it is €150 for first visit and €75 for follow up visit for prescriptions. Gino Kenny TD said: “Menopause is something all women at some stage will go through, and the idea that basic medical care for women can be exploited is outrageous. I was informed by a constituent, who was referred from her GP in Ballyowen Primary Care Centre to the new Menopause/HRT clinic, that her medication prescribed in the new clinic is the exact same as previously prescribed by her GP. However, she had to pay €150 for her first visit, more than double her GP cost, and will have to pay €75 going forward to get a repeat prescription that previously cost €20. “I am fully supportive of a focus on women’s healthcare and standardising the care to be provided to women across the country, but it is unacceptable that women should have a cost burden associated with their healthcare. I have written to the Minister for Health and I am calling on him to review these prices and ensure that women are not discriminated against in our healthcare service.”