Abortion in Ireland Will Be Cost-Free When It Becomes Legal

Abortions in Ireland will not cost women anything, officials have confirmed ahead of the procedure’s legalization. Irish voters repealed a decades-old abortion ban in their constitution in May and the country’s health minister, Simon Harris, confirmed Wednesday that the procedure will be available to women free of charge through the Irish health-care system. Harris said he hoped the move would prevent the creation of private clinics and stop women from traveling outside Ireland to seek abortions—as has happened for decades. Irish President Michael Higgins signed a bill removing the nation’s Eighth Amendment on Tuesday, which gave equal rights to a woman and an unborn child. The law to govern abortion could reportedly be enacted by January.