AQW 48365/22-27


Ms Connie Egan
Alliance Party
North Down


Tabled Date: 10/06/2026
Answered On Date: 22/07/2026
Priority Written: No


Question:
To ask the Minister of Health to detail the number of exceptional circumstances applications for labiaplasty, since the point that services were decommissioned.


Answer:
It is not possible to retrospectively determine the number of patients who were on the labiaplasty waiting list at the time the new guidance was issued and the services were decommissioned.
To date, 14 letters have been received indicating consideration of an appeal for labiaplasty. However, the required appeal documentation has not yet been submitted by the requesting clinicians to the Effective Use of Resources (EUR) Appeals Panel Secretariat. As a result, there is currently insufficient information available for the Panel to consider any of these cases.
Communication with patients on waiting lists rests with Health and Social Care Trusts. Trusts are expected to inform affected patients where services are no longer commissioned and to provide appropriate advice on next steps, including consideration of alternative pathways where clinically appropriate.
The EUR policy was reviewed and updated in 2021 and sets out the current commissioning position for a wide range of procedures and treatments, including labiaplasty. The policy reflects emerging clinical evidence from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) and other relevant bodies. The policy is available online at: https://online.hscni.net/eur-update-2022/
The updated criteria were informed by a range of stakeholders including Health Service Consultants, Nurses, Trust Managers, GPs, Royal College of Surgeons representatives, Personal and Public Involvement leads, Public Health and former Health and Social Care Board staff.
In addition to this a pubic consultation was launched in October 2021 and lasted for a period of 13 weeks. The consultation process offered an opportunity for all stakeholders including primary and secondary care clinicians, patients and the general public to consider and comment on the proposed changes.
In Northern Ireland, a GP or Consultant may determine that there are exceptional clinical circumstances that mean a patient should undergo the required procedure/intervention. In such cases, the clinician may submit an Effective Use of Resources (EUR) appeal on behalf of the patient. An appeal is considered when the clinician believes the patient’s circumstances are significantly different from others with the same condition and that they are likely to gain greater benefit from the treatment than would normally be expected. All appeals are reviewed by the EUR Appeals Panel, which looks at each case individually to make sure decisions are fair, consistent and transparent.
In Northern Ireland, labiaplasty is regarded as a predominantly cosmetic procedure and is not routinely commissioned. It is classified, alongside a number of other cosmetic surgical procedures, as a treatment of low clinical priority. The commissioning position in Northern Ireland is consistent with that adopted across other parts of the UK.
The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists recommends that female genital cosmetic surgery (FGCS) should not be undertaken within the NHS unless it is medically indicated, and should not normally be offered to individuals below 18 years of age, due to continued anatomical development during puberty.