Eligible couples can receive one free round of in vitro fertilisation (IVF treatment) from September. 

Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly is expected to announce the scheme today, having secured €10 million for the service in Budget 2023. 

This will be the first time in the history of the State there will be publicly-funded reproductive treatment. 

The HSE is finalising the plans, with services to be provided through private clinics. 

The IVF treatment will be given to couples who have had no more than one privately-funded round. 

Access criteria for couples will include a known clinical cause of infertility, and the number of children a couple already have will be considered. 

There is also expected to be maximum age limits and Body Mass Index requirements. These criteria were recommended by a working group of clinical experts. 

Up to three cycles of intrauterine insemination (IUI) will be covered for those deemed clinically eligible for treatment. 

Public funding will be commenced on a structured and phased basis. Treatment involving donated materials such as an egg or sperm, for example, will not be funded in September until necessary legislation has passed. 

Mr Donnelly will update his Cabinet colleagues on the plans in their final meeting before their summer recess.