Opposition Calling for Health Committee to Meet Regarding Presov Hospital (2)

Bratislava, 5 May (TASR) - At a press conference on Tuesday, opposition MPs from the Christian Democrats (KDH), Progressive Slovakia (PS) and Freedom and Solidarity (SaS) called for an extraordinary meeting of the House health committee to discuss the suspension of the construction of the military hospital in Presov, demanding an explanation from Health Minister Kamil Sasko (Voice-SD) and Defence Minister Robert Kalinak (Smer-SD) as to why the project has been suspended. "We have serious suspicions of financial chaos and a lack of transparency. There is absolute disorder regarding this matter. We therefore request that Health Minister Kamil Sasko, Defence Minister Robert Kalinak and acting Vice-premier Tomas Drucker (Voice-SD) should be invited to the meeting. They must clearly explain how the construction work is being financed and where the funds from Slovakia's Recovery and Resilience Plan, originally earmarked for this project, have gone," said MP Peter Stachura (KDH), adding that it's important for patients, society and the people of Slovakia for this hospital to be high-quality, safe and efficient. According to MP Oskar Dvorak (PS), there's a risk of losing €195 million. "Ministers Sasko and Drucker, however, are acting as if nothing is happening - as if hundreds of millions of euros were a matter of course and literally grew on trees. I therefore call on them to immediately explain how they intend to save this money and to begin negotiations with the European Commission without delay regarding its reallocation to areas in which it can still realistically help the Slovak health-care system," said Dvorak. "The Presov hospital is in trouble, and one thing is clear today: this hospital won't be completed before the [next] election. This means that cooperation between the current and future governments is absolutely essential to prevent delays in paying invoices, disputes and similar issues," added MP Tomas Szalay (SaS). Funds from the Recovery and Resilience Plan earmarked for constructing a military hospital in Presov are not in peril, Health Minister Kamil Sasko told journalists in Parliament on Tuesday in response to claims that Slovakia could lose nearly €200 million due to the suspended construction of the hospital, insisting that the recovery plan milestones will be met. The Vice-premier's Office for the Recovery Plan and a Knowledge-based Economy rejects PS's claims, saying that it's unjustifiably scaring the public by suggesting that Slovakia stands to lose €195 million from the recovery plan. "The Slovak Republic is required to meet specific quantitative targets, namely the construction of 1,287 beds at the structural completion stage and 1,190 beds at the fully equipped hospital stage. These targets are being met through projects resulting from calls for proposals as well as projects designated by a decision of the government. In the case of the Presov hospital, the government decided to count its capacity toward meeting the targets, but this was conditional on the conclusion of a financing agreement under the Recovery and Resilience Plan, which wasn't forthcoming. This doesn't mean a loss of funds. The sum of €195 million remains available to finance eligible hospital construction projects, and it can be used until 2028. The changes regarding the hospital project in Presov don't affect the availability of these funds," stated the Vice-premier's Office. Last autumn, the Defence Ministry signed a contract for developing and modernising the university hospital and polyclinic in Presov worth €447.8 million, ex-VAT. The new hospital was expected to be built by 2027, but the Defence Ministry suspended construction last week after a quality inspection of the work on the building's load-bearing elements. The defence minister also acknowledged that the completion date for the hospital's construction may be postponed. NOTE: This story has been extended to include paragraphs 5-7. am/df