Prime Minister Andrew Holness has announced that the government will be breaking ground to construct new buildings and expand the Spanish Town Hospital in St. Catherine.

The Prime Minister also announced the construction of two new Type 5 clinics in Portmore and Old Harbour in the parish.

Speaking on January 8, 2024 while touring the Montego Bay Comprehensive Type 5 Clinic in St. James, Prime Minister Holness stated: “Later on this month we will be breaking ground for a massive, upgrade and construction of new buildings at the Spanish Town Hospital where I was born. It will be a massive investment in healthcare. We will build two new Type 5 healthcare facilities, one in Portmore and the other in Old Harbour. These will be modern facilities.”

The announcement of the massive upgrades to the healthcare sector is in addition to the renovations at several public health facilities including the Cornwall Regional Hospital. The upcoming expansion of the Montego Bay Comprehensive Type 5 Clinic in St. James is also underway.

“As an administration, we decided to make a massive investment, [in the Cornwall Regional Hospital] the equivalent of literally rebuilding the building, that’s the level of investment that we have put in place. We are in the final phase of the development and from what I am seeing, the building has been restored to better than its original conditions and there will be more modern services and facilities offered. There is no question that it will be a credit to our health system and our people in and around this region who will benefit,” said Prime Minister Holness.

Adjacent to the Cornwall Regional Hospital will be a new Adolescent Children’s Hospital which will have advanced specialists and advanced care to benefit the people in the region and the entire Jamaica.

Importantly, the Prime Minister underscored that the challenges in healthcare emerged because previously the economy did not generate the revenue to make long-term allocations to improve the service capabilities of the healthcare sector.

“We are fixing the economy, we are in a better position and that should not be taken for granted. Having fixed the economy, we are now taking the dividends from that and allocating it into areas that matter for the people, like our health facilities,” said Prime Minister Holness.

In the meantime, the Prime Minister assured Jamaicans that the country’s health care is the government’s primary objective and the government is making all the investments necessary to improve access and quality.

With these upgrades to the health care system, Prime Minister Holness said that the capacity for early intervention in health crises will be expanded.