Kieran O'Donnell (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for her reply. University Hospital Limerick has submitted plans for 60 modular beds. These plans are, I think, with the HSE, which is in discussions with the Department of Health. For me, this matter is very simple. As a public representative in Limerick city, I know what people have had to endure in recent years due to a lack of bed capacity in the mid-west and I want the matter rectified. The 96 acute beds are now part of the capital plan, for which I thank the Minister for Health. The initiative will make an enormous difference but it will take a period to get through the normal planning, procurement and building processes. In the interim, I want how necessary these modular beds are to be conveyed in the strongest possible terms. I will work with the Minister, the HSE and the Department of Health to find ways to fast-track the process and have these beds provided as quickly as possible.