S.I. No. 227/2025 - Health Act 1970 (Section 67F) (Payments in Respect of Menopause Products Dispensing Services) Regulations 2025

1. (1) These Regulations may be cited as the Health Act 1970 (Section 67F) (Payments in Respect of Menopause Products Dispensing Services) Regulations 2025.

(2) These Regulations shall come into operation on the 1 day of June 2025.

2. In these Regulations, “reimbursement price” has the meaning assigned to it by Regulation 2 of the Health Professionals (Reduction of Payments to Community Pharmacy Contractors) Regulations 2011 (S.I. 300 of 2011).

3. The amount of the payment to be made to a pharmacy provider in respect of the dispensing specified in column (2) of Schedule 1 opposite a particular reference in column (1) thereof is prescribed as the sum of the following

(a) the reimbursement price in respect of the particular menopause product; and

(b) the amount of the payment specified in column (3) of Schedule 1 opposite the particular reference in column (1) thereof.

4. No payment shall be made to a pharmacy provider under these Regulations in respect of a relevant woman where a charge was imposed on the relevant woman by that pharmacy provider in respect of the dispensing of a relevant product.

Schedule 1

Regulation 3

Payments to pharmacy providers

Reference Number

(1)

Description

(2)

Amount

(3)

1.

Dispensing a relevant product that is a menopause product to a woman who, as a private patient, falls below the monthly Drugs Payment Scheme threshold and who receives that relevant product that is a menopause product pursuant to the provisions of the

Health Insurance (Amendment) and Health (Provision of Menopause Products) Act 2024

) (No. 42 of 2024)

€5.00 per menopause product

2.

Dispensing a relevant product that is a menopause product to a woman with limited eligibility who receives that relevant product that is a menopause product under the Drugs Payment Scheme

€5.00 per menopause product

3.

Dispensing a relevant product that is a menopause product to a woman with full eligibility who receives that relevant product that is a menopause product under the General Medical Services Scheme

€5.00 per menopause product

The Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Services, Reform and Digitalisation consents to the making of the foregoing Regulations.

GIVEN under my Official Seal,

28 May, 2025.

JACK CHAMBERS,

Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Services Reform and Digitalisation.

GIVEN under my hand,

29 May 2025

JENNIFER CARROLL MCNEILL,

Minister for Health

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(

This note is not part of the Instrument and does not purport to be a legal interpretation.

)

These Regulations are made under section 67F(4) of the Health Act 1970 (No. 1 of 1970) (inserted by

section 4

of the

Health Insurance (Amendment) and Health (Provision of Menopause Products) Act 2024

) (No. 42 of 2024).

The objective of these Regulations is to provide for the dispensing fees to be paid to pharmacists in respect of menopause products dispensed to woman pursuant to the

Health Insurance (Amendment) and Health (Provision of Menopause Products) Act 2024

) (No. 42 of 2024).

Notice of the making of this Statutory Instrument was published in

“Iris Oifigiúil” of

3

rd June,

2025.

I, JENNIFER CARROLL MACNEILL, Minister for Health, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by section 67F(4) of the

Health Act 1970

(No. 1 of 1970)(inserted by

section 4

of the

Health Insurance (Amendment) and Health (Provision of Menopause Products) Act 2024

) (No. 42 of 2024), with the consent of the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Services, Reform and Digitalisation, hereby make the following regulations