Backing for bill on insurance for cancer survivors
The Government has backed legislation to ensure that certain insurance products cannot discriminate against cancer survivors.
The new laws are to ensure that cancer survivors can access products such as mortgage-protection insurance on fair and equitable terms.
The Department of Finance said that the Government amendments to the Central Bank (Amendment) Bill 2025 would introduce a statutory ‘right to be forgotten’ for cancer survivors.
The key amendments will:
- Reduce the remission period from seven years to five years, regardless of age at diagnosis, in line with international medical standards for the end of cancer surveillance,
- Apply a statutory disregard of certain cancer-related medical history to mortgage protection insurance cover of up to €650,000 – increased from €500,000 to reflect the current housing market,
- Allow normal underwriting above that threshold, ensuring, the department says, that the measure remains “proportionate, sustainable, and compliant with EU insurance law and industry practice”, and
- Provide for review of the threshold every five years, informed by CSO residential property-price data and stakeholder consultation.
Technical changes
The amendments also include necessary technical changes to the Insurance Acts 1936 and 1964 to complete reforms to the Insurance Compensation Fund in line with EU requirements.
To reflect the amendments and scope of the Bill, it will be retitled the Insurance (Disregard of Certain Medical History and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2026.
The proposed legislation builds on Insurance Ireland’s Voluntary Code of Practice for Underwriting Mortgage Protection Insurance for Cancer Survivors, which requires insurers to disregard a cancer diagnosis seven years after treatment completion (or five years for those diagnosed under 18) for mortgage-protection insurance up to €500,000.
The bill was first introduced by Fianna Fail TD Catherine Ardagh. The department had previously said that it needed to be “carefully aligned” with EU regulatory frameworks.
‘Certainty’
Tánaiste and Minister for Finance Simon Harris said that the legislation provided certainty for cancer survivors.
“A cancer diagnosis should never define a person’s future, and should not stand in the way of something as fundamental as owning a home or providing security for their family,” he stated.
Minister of State Robert Troy said that he was committed to bringing the bill “swiftly” through the Oireachtas as soon as possible.