National Gender Service can't close waiting list - HSE

The HSE has said the National Gender Service (NGS) does not have the authority to close its waiting list, despite the service saying it intends to do so earlier this week.

On Thursday, Prime Time reported that the NGS, which provides healthcare for transgender adults, had informed the HSE it would be closing its waiting list from 1 March 2026 due to a lack of facilities and resources.

A letter sent from chair of the NGS's Clinical Governance Committee Brian Cotter to Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll MacNeill and HSE CEO Bernard Gloster, described the decision as "intensely regrettable".

However, the HSE has now said in a statement it has informed the NGS that under the National Waiting List Management Policy and associated protocols, "waiting lists may only be managed in accordance with established, documented procedures that ensure fairness, transparency, and compliance with governance standards".

"The HSE has advised the National Gender Service that they do not have the authority to close this waiting list," it added.

Following news of the earlier letter issued by the NGS, the Executive Director of Transgender Equality Network Ireland (TENI) Daire Dempsey said the closure represented "a devastating denial" of the basic right of trans people to healthcare and described it as a healthcare failure that should concern every citizen."

A statement issued on behalf of a coalition of LGBTQ+ organisations also urged the "Government to fast-track the creation of a modern, best-practice healthcare model that is accessible, compassionate, and based on patient-centred standards".

There are around 2,470 people currently on the waiting list, which the NGS plans to close to new clients from March next year.

Those who are on the list will be assessed, though at current rates that process could take many years.

As of last month, according to the NGS, the average waiting time people currently receiving assessments had experienced was four and a half years.

Transgender rights and advocacy groups say under current plans people joining the waiting list now will not be seen for up to a decade.

They are seeking a change to the model of care used by the NGS, which they say is unnecessarily intrusive and contributes to long waiting times, something the NGS rejects.