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The Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) Act 2018 was commenced on 01/01/2019 in Ireland. The Act provides for legal termination of pregnancy under defined circumstances including for any reason at < 12 weeks gestation; and where two doctors agree there is 'a condition affecting the foetus that is likely to lead to the death of the foetus either before, or within 28 days of, birth'. As such, abortion for congenital anomaly (CA) can occur at a number of time points, depending on the adjudged severity. Infants born with CAs frequently require significant medical intervention and account for a high proportion of admissions to paediatric intensive care units (PICUs). The purpose of this paper was to evaluate the number of infants with CAs admitted to an Irish PICU in the period before and after the implementation of the Act. All PICU admissions < 1 month of age to a single Irish paediatric hospital between 2012 and 2021 were analysed. CAs were recorded, and the periods before and after the commencement of the Act compared. We found a difference in admissions involving CAs, particularly those related to congenital heart disease involving single ventricle anatomy. It is plausible that this difference was as a result of improved access to abortion services following the implementation of the Act. This article explores the legal conditions related to the abortion of a foetus with a CA in Ireland, and the possible impact of the Independent Review of the Operation of the Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) Act 2018. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 1983, Ireland became the first country in the world to constitutionalize fetal rights. The 8th Amendment to the Constitution, passed by a referendum of the People, resulted in constitutional protection for "the right to life of the unborn, " which was deemed "equal" to the right to life of the "mother. " Since then, enshrining fetal rights in constitutions and in legislation has emerged as a key part of anti-abortion campaigning. This Article traces the constitutionalization of fetal rights in Ireland and its implications for law, politics, and women. In so doing, it provides a salutary tale of such an approach. More than thirty years after the 8th Amendment, it has become clear that Ireland now has an abortion law regime that is essentially "unliveable. " Not only that, but it has a body of jurisprudence so deeply determined by a constitutionalized fetal-rights orientation that law, politics, and medical practice are deeply impacted and strikingly constrained. This is notwithstanding the clear hardship women in Ireland experience as a result of constitutionalized fetal rights and the resultant almost-total prohibition on accessing abortion in Ireland. This Article argues that, wherever one stands on the question of whether legal abortion ought to be broadly available in a particular jurisdiction, constitutionalizing fetal rights leaves no meaningful space for judgment at either political or personal levels. Furthermore, constitutionalizing fetal rights can have unforeseen implications across jurisprudence and medical practice, creating a situation in which there is essentially no space for more liberal interpretations that respect women's reproductive autonomy. While this may be desirable from an ideological perspective for those who hold a firm anti-abortion position, it is distinctively problematic for women and for politics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abortion is illegal in Ireland, except in very limited circumstances, but the Irish Constitution guarantees the right of women to travel abroad to obtain abortion services. Every year, large numbers of women travel to the UK to obtain abortions. This article argues that this can be regarded as an illustration of cross-border reproductive care (CBRC). CBRC is the phenomenon whereby people travel abroad to obtain assisted reproduction services that are illegal in their country of origin. A leading commentator, Guido Pennings, argues that CBRC is to be welcomed as a means by which society might compromise on issues of profound moral disagreement. Other commentators believe CBRC is highly problematic. This article argues that the Irish abortion example, when examined as an example of CBRC, illustrates both the advantages and disadvantages of CBRC identified by Pennings and his critics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abortion has been a controversial topic in Irish law and one which the Government has been forced to address following the decision of the European Court of Human Rights in A, B and C v. Ireland. The Working Group established to make recommendations have specifically been instructed to deal only with the issues raised in the A, B and C judgment and legislate on the basic of the 'X case'. This restricted approach calls for legalisation of abortion only where the life of the mother is at risk, a position unique only to Ireland and Andorra within Europe. The vast majority of member states to the European Convention on Human Rights allow for legal abortion on the basis of foetal abnormality and with this emerging consensus the margin of appreciation hitherto afforded by the European Court to member states is diminishing. The advancement and availability of non-invasive genetic tests that can determine foetal abnormalities together with the ruling in R. R. v. Poland leaves Ireland in a precarious position for omitting any reference to foetal abnormalities in any proposed legislation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights has recently handed down its judgement in the case of three women contesting the abortion law in the Republic of Ireland, which has one of the most restrictive abortion laws in the world. Although the Court ruled that Ireland had to clarify the current law following the success of one of the three claims, the failure of the other two claims allows Ireland to continue to enforce its law, which has an adverse effect on women's health. This paper, therefore, proposes an amendment to abortion legislation in the Republic of Ireland that would be compatible with safeguarding women's health, highlighting several circumstances in which the continuation of a pregnancy may have a detrimental impact on a woman's physical and/or mental health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the development of Ireland's abortion policy from 1861 to the present day. It explores the reasoning for this policy as well as the inherent problems with this policy. It examines in detail the A, B and C v. Ireland judgement and its impact, (if any) on Irish abortion law. Finally, it discusses the margin of appreciation doctrine used by the European Court of Human Rights in deciding cases of a moral nature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]