DUBLIN’S ONLY assisted reproduction centre offering free treatment to medical card holders has seen the number of public patients seeking its services double since the economic downturn began.

Figures obtained by the Medical Independent showed that the proportion of medical card holders being treated at the Human Assisted Reproduction Unit in the Rotunda maternity hospital doubled between 2007 and 2010.

While medical card holders made up just 6.2 per cent of the unit in 2007, over 12 per cent of its patients last year were medical card holders.

The most drastic increase came in 2008, when the figure jumped to 9.2 per cent, while the proportion grew again to 10.7 per cent.

The growth in the number to over 12 per cent last year came as the overall usage of the clinic fell for the five time in five years, the report added.

706 couples had attended the clinic in 2009, but only 630 availed of the service in 2010 – a fall one source attributed to the price of the treatment, which costs €4,700 for a single cycle of assisted reproduction.

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