Government also commits to 929 replacement beds under new plan An additional 3,438 acute inpatient beds will be opened in hospitals across the country between now and 2031, the Government has said. The commitment, outlined in the new Acute Inpatient Hospital Bed Expansion Plan , also includes 929 replacement acute inpatient beds, bringing the total number of beds to be delivered over the next seven years to 4,367. Since 2020 around 1,218 additional acute hospital beds have been introduced into the system.
Today’s announcement includes 1,015 beds which the Government previously committed to and are yet to be delivered. Of the new beds announced, the Government has committed to opening 441 beds this year alone. A further 1,541 will be delivered between 2025 and 2028, while 1,456 will open in the period 2029-2031.
Between now and 2031, the HSE Dublin and Northeast region will see the greatest increase, with 623 beds promised. This is followed by Dublin and Southeast (604); Southwest (579); Dublin and Midlands (571); West and Northwest (422) and Midwest (198). Cork University Hospital has been promised the most new beds (341), followed by Dublin’s Beaumont Hospital (232) and University Hospital Galway (228).
If targets are met, by 2031 there will be an overall increase of 4,656 beds compared to 2020 figures. In total, Cork University Hospital will see the most new beds over that period (412), followed by University Hospital Limerick (386) and Dublin’s Mater Hospital (332). .
