National Women’s Council welcomes renewed focus on barriers to abortion
Published: Tuesday, May 12, 2026
Press release, 12 May 2026
Barriers to abortion services are paternalistic, medically unnecessary, and must be removed, according to a letter from the National Women’s Council (NWC) to all TDs calling on them to support the reproductive rights bill. The Bill calls for the removal of the mandatory 3-day wait, an end to criminalisation of healthcare professionals, and for clarity on terminations for medical reasons.
Executive Director of NWC, Corrinne Hasson, said:
“The vast majority of people in Ireland support a woman’s right to make her own decisions about reproductive healthcare. Most people believe that healthcare should be provided at home. Yet we know that at least 1,500 women have travelled for an abortion since abortion was introduced here due to ongoing barriers to care. The mandatory 3-day wait is part of that picture. It is paternalistic, medically unnecessary, and delays or even prevents women from accessing timely care, thus forcing them to travel abroad. This urgently needs to change.”
The Social Democrats Bill would remove the mandatory 3-day wait, and implement other key recommendations contained in the O’Shea Review which was carried out in 2022. The mandatory 3-day wait is also the subject of a Sinn Féin Bill and a bill brought by Solidarity TD Ruth Coppinger in January.
Marie O’Shea’s recommendations include decriminalisation of abortion, and clarification on the 28-day clause for fatal foetal abnormality. This clause demands certainty from consultants that a foetus has no chance of living past 28 days after birth, certainty that is extremely difficult for healthcare professionals to provide. Where doctors cannot provide this certainty, they are unable to offer abortion as an option because the legislation criminalises abortion after 12 weeks. Women in these devastating circumstances are left without options for care at home if they decide they cannot continue with the pregnancy.
Paula Pinzón Hernández, Senior Policy Coordinator at NWC, said:
“During the repeal campaign, we heard many heartbreaking stories from women and couples forced to travel to terminate a much-wanted pregnancy. These stories convinced many people to vote for repeal. And yet, it is exactly these stories that are happening again now due to the ongoing criminalisation of healthcare professionals and the 28 day rule. We call on all TDs to support all efforts to provide healthcare at home to people in these circumstances.”
The World Health Organisation (WHO) explicitly says that criminalisation and waiting periods on abortion are barriers to healthcare, and healthcare is a human right. NWC has campaigned for decades for access to abortion in Ireland for everyone who needs it.
NWC will be at the Dáil tomorrow morning from 9:30am to support the Reproductive Rights Bill.
Ends/
For comment: Corrinne Hasson and Paula Pinzón Hernández
Find here NWC’s letter to all TDs: https://www.nwci.ie/images/uploads/NWC_letter_re_Repro_Rights_Bill.pdf
Find here 2022 research on public attitudes to abortion: https://www.nwci.ie/learn/article/public_opinion_of_abortion_shows_80_agree_no_woman_should_have_to_travel_ab
Find here the WHO’s guidelines on abortion: https://iris.who.int/server/api/core/bitstreams/1a83304a-3601-4ada-9a77-fea930ed9295/content
For more information, please contact Sinéad Nolan, NWC Senior Communications Coordinator on sineadn@nwci.ie
About NWC
The National Women’s Council is the leading national representative organisation for women and women’s groups in Ireland, founded in 1973. We have over 190 member groups and a large and growing community of individual supporters.
The ambition of the National Women’s Council is an Ireland where every woman enjoys true equality and no woman is left behind. This ambition shapes and informs our work, and, with our living values, how we work.
We are a movement-building organisation rooted in our membership, working on the whole island of Ireland. We are also part of the international movement to protect and advance women’s and girls’ rights. Our purpose is to lead action for the achievement of women’s and girls’ equality through mobilising, influencing, and building solidarity. Find out more on www.nwci.ie