Nationalist Party claims healthsector has been abandoned by government

Nationalist Party claimed that the health sector has been abandoned by government, referring to the situation at the currently closed Paola Hub.

“The Labour Government has failed to prioritise healthcare, leaving patients waiting and healthcare workers disheartened,” shadow minister for health Adrian Delia, and shadow minister for primary care Ian Vassallo stated on Tuesday during a press conference outside the Vincent Moran Hub car park.

The Paola Hub, initially promised to open in 2021, has faced numerous delays and is currently offering only a mobile MRI service from a container in its car park. The hub was intended to alleviate pressure on Mater Dei Hospital and provide various health services, yet it remains closed with no clear path to operational status.

In addition to the Paola Hub's issues, Health Minister Jo Etienne Abela described the establishment of a Northern hub in Malta’s healthcare system as unfeasible and “mathematical impossibility” due to the critical shortage of human resources in the sector.

The PN argued that these failures reflect a broader crisis in the healthcare system, characterised by corruption and mismanagement.

“Despite an increase in population, the government's planning and execution have been severely lacking,” they stated.

The PN MPs highlighted that, “In addition to being engulfed by 11 years of stories of fraud and corruption and being in crisis, this is also a sector with no plan to reassure Maltese and Gozitan patients.”

“The Labour government holds a long list of failures where healthcare is concerned. Instead of focusing on how to provide a service to patients, Labour is focused on how to defraud them,” they pointed out, “This shows that healthcare is not a priority for the Labour Government.”

The PN affirmed that “the only hope of placing this sector back at the top of the country’s priorities would be a nationalist party in government, proven not by words but by actions.”