The Department of Health has insisted that the cancer screening programme BreastCheck will be available nationally from November.
This follows criticism from the Irish Cancer Society, which said it was disappointed over the delay in rolling out the service.
Earlier, the Irish Cancer Society called on women of all ages to be more aware of the risks of breast cancer.
The society made the call as it launched this year's Breast Cancer Awareness month.
One of the main aims this year is to encourage older women to be more aware of the risks involved.
The National Cancer Registry shows that almost 2,400 cases of breast cancer were diagnosed in 2005, 75% of those cases were in women over 50 years of age.
37% of cases diagnosed in 2005 were in women over 65 years of age.
Once the roll-out of the national breast screening programme has been completed the Irish Cancer Society will be calling on the Government to increase the screening age up to 70 - it currently stands at 64.
