asked the Minister for Health when a grant from the Hospitals' Trust Fund will be allowed towards the cost of the proposed improvements to the maternity accommodation in Ballina District Hospital.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Ballina District Hospital: Maternity Accommodation.
7.
The proposed scheme of improvements to the maternity unit at Ballina District Hospital was deferred for economy reasons, together with a number of other projects in the hospital building programme.
I have recently suggested to the local authority that a decision on the scheme should be postponed until the current project for a substantial extension of the maternity accommodation at the County Hospital, Castlebar, has been completed and its effect on the maternity bed requirements of the county as a whole has been fully assessed. The Deputy will appreciate, therefore, that I cannot at present indicate whether a grant from the Hospitals' Trust Fund can be made towards the cost of the Ballina Hospital Scheme.