Making contraception free for all women would cost the state up to €100 million a year.
The Health Minister previously made a commitment to make it free by 2021.
A working group has suggested three approaches. The first is to bring in free contraception for all women at a cost of between €80 to €100 million a year.
The second suggests funding the consultation and insertion of long-acting reversible contraceptives, which would cost between €30 to €40 million per year.
However the working group acknowledges this proposal wouldn't reflect the fact that women have different contraceptive needs and preferences.
The final idea would cost €18 to €22 million per year and would focus on women aged 17 to 24, who are considered more likely to be unable to afford contraception.
The report concludes the notion that there is a widespread affordability problem across the population in terms of accessing contraception remains unproven.
