The HSE has promised a major increase in hospital bed provision in the MidWest over the next seven years.
Under the plans announced today, the health service will provide an additional 198 new beds throughout Clare, Limerick and North Tipperary by 2031.
The Government is promising to deliver just short of 3,000 new hospital beds nationwide between 2025 and 2031.
156 of these have been ringfenced for the MidWest, with the HSE planning to increase capacity from next year.
Between 2025 and 2028, its pledging to deliver an additional 84 beds at University Hospital Limerick and 48 new beds at Ennis General, with 24 beds also promised for Nenagh Hospital.
This allocation is among over 1,500 new beds the Government is pledging to deliver over the next four years and after this a further 1,452 beds are promised to come on stream between 2029 and 2031.
Of these, 42 will be allocated to the MidWest and will be installed at St.John’s Hospital in Limerick.
In total, under this plan 198 new beds are promised for the HSE MidWest Health region by 2031, which is the lowest allocation in the country when compared to other health regions.
Over the same timeframe, 571 beds are planned for HSE Dublin & Midlands, 623 for HSE Dublin & North East, 604 for Dublin and South East, 579 for HSE South West and 422 beds for HSE West & NorthWest.
