After months of haggling, GPs and the HSE appear to have settled on a fee of between €400 and €450 for every abortion facilitated under the Government’s brand new GP-led abortion regime. Last night the Irish Medical Organisation and a spokeswoman for the Department of Health said that broad agreement had been reached between the parties at the talks, but that some details would be considered further on Wednesday “when it is hoped that matters can be concluded”.

Under the proposed regime a pregnant mother will visit the GP for an initial consultation and can request an abortion without specifying grounds. If the GP certifies the abortion she will return for a second visit three days later. At that stage the GP can administer the two drugs to abort the pregnancy and end the life of the unborn child. The drug will be given to the woman in the doctor’s surgery and she will not have to go to a pharmacy.

The ‘service’ will be free of charge to patients, with the HSE paying the full fee of €400-€450.

In practice GPs are expected to provide a medical abortion up to nine weeks of pregnancy. Women who are between nine and 12 weeks pregnant will have a surgical abortion in a maternity unit.

However, it has been reported that many maternity units around the country are resisting participating in the regime. The Irish Times claims that their resistance is due to a ‘lack of resources’.