Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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573. To ask the Minister for Health further to Parliamentary Question No. 443 of 23 October 2018; if he will elaborate on the information provided in the reply with respect to the reopening of the short stay ward at Letterkenny University Hospital; the date on which the unit will be reinstated; the details of the staffing complement which be allocated to the facility; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [44969/18]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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€10 million in funding is being made available in 2019 to increase acute bed capacity in line with the recommendations of the Health Service Capacity Review. Increasing capacity is a priority for this Government.

My Department is currently in discussions with the HSE, in the context of the National Service Plan 2019, to identify the sites for investment and the associated number of beds, as part of an agreed capacity programme for 2019.

The selection and opening of beds on specific sites in 2019 and future years will be considered as part of the annual estimates and service planning process, and subject to financial, operational, human resource and policy considerations and priorities.