Press Release from Dept. of Health, Ireland
Third Annual Report of notifications in accordance with the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Act 2013 laid before the Houses of the Oireachtas
The third annual report on the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Act 2013 has been laid before the Houses of the Oireachtas as required under section 20 of the Act. The report covers the period from 1st January 2016 until 31st December 2016. The report shows that twenty-five (25) medical procedures were carried out under the Act in 2016. Eight (8) procedures were arising from a risk of physical illness, one (1) arising from a risk from suicide and sixteen (16) from emergencies arising from physical illness.
The information published on these procedures is restricted in order to limit the risk of identification in what is a private, confidential matter between women and their doctors.
The 2016 figure (25) is in line with annual national estimates presented to the Joint Oireachtas Committee hearings on the General Scheme of the Act in January 2013. It is slightly lower than the number of terminations notified in 2015, when the figure stood at 26.
The HSE has also submitted a report as required under section 15 of the Act on Reviews carried out in 2016. This report has also been laid before the Houses of the Oireachtas.
The HSE report shows that two (2) applications for review were made to the Executive in 2016. It states that both reviews were carried out under section 9 of the Act. In both cases the Review Committee found that the application met the criteria for termination of pregnancy under the Act.
2016 Annual Report – Notifications in accordance with Protection of Life During Pregnancy Act 2013