The Government is to provide hundreds of additional beds and develop a new facility close to University Hospital Limerick (UHL) as part of a new initiative to tackle chronic overcrowding in the region, Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll MacNeill has announced. The Minister said that Hiqa had found that “the key problem is that there are not enough inpatient beds in the midwest to meet demand”. Ms Carroll MacNeill said while additional beds would be provided at University Hospital Limerick, some services currently located there could be moved to another location. Like everyone else in Ireland, the people of the midwest region deserve access to high-quality and timely acute hospital care when they need it most. The Minister said current plans would deliver about 306 beds at University Hospital Limerick to progress the first option put forward by Hiqa.

Source: The Irish Times December 17, 2025 01:34 UTC