New report reveals over 8,000 abortions occurred in Ireland in 2022

A new report has revealed over 8,000 abortions took place in Ireland in 2022. 

The Annual Report on the Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) Act 2018 found that 8,156 medical procedures were carried out under the Act between January 1, 2022 and December 31, 2022. 

According to the report - which has been laid before the Houses of the Oireachtas as required under section 20 of the Act - 22 procedures were carried out due to a risk to the life or health of the woman, and four were due to a risk to the life or health of the woman in an emergency situation. 

Eighty eight procedures were performed due to a fatal foetal anomaly, amounting to just over 1% of the number of terminations in 2022. 

A total of 8,042 terminations in early pregnancy (up to twelve weeks) were recorded in the same time period. 

This is almost double the number of terminations which occurred between January 1, 2021 and December 31, 2021, when 4,577 procedures were carried out. 

The Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) Act requires the date on which the termination of pregnancy was carried out (and place of residence of the pregnant woman) to be notified to the Minister for Health, Stephen Donnelly. 

Data indicates January, March and December were the months with the highest number of terminations in 2022, with 783, 751 and 752 respectively, while July was listed as the month with the fewest notifications to the minister (487). 

The county with the highest number of terminations recorded was Dublin, where 3,005 terminations took place. This is followed by Cork (734 terminations) and Limerick (377 terminations). 

Leitrim was noted as the county with the fewest number of terminations (48). 

A full list of terminations by county in 2022 is available below: 

Additionally, 12 pregnant women listed Northern Ireland as their place of residence, while five other women were reportedly from a location outside of Ireland. 

The Health Service Executive (HSE) has also submitted a report on reviews carried out in 2022. 

According to the Department of Health, the report shows that four applications for review were received in 2022, with two withdrawn; one application was found to have met the requirements for a lawful termination of pregnancy and one did not meet the requirements. 

Minister Donnelly recently announced the provision of termination of pregnancy services in five additional maternity hospital sites, including Kilkenny, Portiuncula, Letterkenny, Wexford and Portlaoise hospitals. 

It brings the total number of maternity hospitals providing early (under 12 weeks) termination services to seventeen. 

Announcing the news at the time, Minister Donnelly said, "This expansion is a significant step towards the provision of full termination services for women in all nineteen Maternity hospitals. I would like to acknowledge the work of the HSE National Women and Infant Health Programme, the hospitals and the service providers who have contributed to this important milestone in termination of pregnancy services in Ireland.

"I look forward to further expansion of services in 2024 and the reality of safe, equitable access to this service for all women." 

Currently in Ireland, a pregnant woman seeking termination services must wait at least three days between being certified and having the abortion procedure. 

Women's groups and activists are among those who have called for an end to this waiting period. 

However, concerns on removing this reflection period have also been expressed, most recently in a Joint Committee on Health debate in October 2023 by Deputy Peadar Toibín and Senator Ronan Mullen.