A Dublin TD wants the morning-after pill given to medical card holders for free.

Currently the cost of the over-the-counter tablet is decided by each individual pharmacy, with prices ranging from €18 to €35.

However, Fine Gael’s Kate O’Connell has said women should not be denied access to contraception simply because they can not afford it.

The latest statistics show that the number of Irish women travelling to England and Wales is consistently dropping, having almost halved since the start of 2000.

Deputy O’Connell has said not everyone is able to go abroad and the pricing system here makes no sense.

“22% of the woman that presented at community pharmacies to access the morning-after pill are medical card holders,” said O’Connell.

“The basis for giving a medical card is means. What we are saying we’re charging people for a product that they would be entitled to free if they visited their GP.”