The government’s decision to scrap plans for an elective-only hospital in Galway must be reversed, according to Social Democrats health spokesperson Pádraig Rice.
Deputy Rice said:
“In 2021, the government committed to building elective-only hospitals in Galway, Cork and Dublin to support the separation of scheduled and unscheduled care. These facilities are needed to ensure that emergency and urgent care does not crowd-out elective care – non-emergency, planned procedures – which makes waiting lists and waiting times longer.
“These elective-only hospitals were a key recommendation in the 2017 Sláintecare report in which the need to protect capacity for elective care was clearly recognised. But now, instead of a standalone elective-only hospital, the plans for Galway appear to have been downgraded to little more than an extension.
“The original plan was for a 200-bed elective-only hospital on the Merlin Park site, made up of 75 elective inpatient beds and 125 day-case beds.
“According to the preliminary business case approved by government in 2022, Galway’s new elective-only hospital was to be built and fully operational by 2028.
“However, now we have learned that senior officials from Galway University Hospital say they have had to ‘refine the scope and budget’ for developing the Merlin Park site, forcing them to ‘leverage existing infrastructure wherever possible’.
“This was confirmed in the Dáil yesterday by Minister Mary Butler. According to the minister, they are now considering just extending the new surgical hub at Merlin Park, which is due to open this year.
“A slightly enlarged surgical hub is no replacement for a standalone elective hospital. The minister may have tried to dress this up as good news for Galway, but this is a serious diluting of previous commitments.
“There is no doubt that surgical hubs help ease pressure in the short-term, but only a standalone elective hospital can deliver the capacity needed to significantly reduce waiting times and free up capacity in existing hospitals.
“We also need urgent clarity on her plans for Cork and Dublin’s elective-only hospitals. Are they to suffer the same fate?
“The Sláintecare recommendation to build elective-only hospitals must be seen as integral, not optional. Failure to progress elective-only hospitals in Galway, Cork and Dublin would undermine the entire reform plan.”
Míde Nic Fhionnlaoich, the Social Democrats’ by-election candidate for Galway West, said:
“This is a betrayal of the people of Galway by this government. The Minister for Health must urgently make good on previous commitments and deliver an elective-only hospital for Galway, not a slightly enlarged hub.
“Anything less would be a token gesture, and a far cry from the radical reorientation of healthcare envisioned under Sláintecare.
“In Galway, we have some of the longest waiting lists in the country for this kind of care. It’s unacceptable for the government to walk back their commitments when there are so many people waiting months and years for elective procedures.”
February 19, 2026