Updated, March 1

THE COUNTRY’S newest hospital is facing the prospect of having to lay off its 75 staff within six of opening its doors to patients, after its operators failed to strike a deal with VHI to offer services to its members.

The Cork Medical Centre, based in Mahon in Cork City, was officially opened to out-patients in October last year – and had planned to expand to allow overnight stays for in-patients on March 14.

That date may now have to be pushed back, with some jobs lost, after operators Sheehan Medical said it hadn’t been able to ensure that VHI customers could receive services under the terms of their insurance policies.

RTÉ News reported that the centre had reached deals with the other insurers, Quinn and AVIVA, last September – but VHI had said there was excess capacity in private hospitals. On that basis, it wasn’t prepared to extend cover to a new private facility.

The VHI said it had first informed Sheehan Medical of that position in 2009, though a spokesperson for Sheehan Medical said this was untrue and that the VHI had encouraged the clinic, with the other private facilities in the city being built almost a century ago.

The Irish Examiner said that all 75 of the hospital’s staff had therefore been given warning that their jobs were at risk, and the hospital may be forced to shut down as a result of the dispute.

Newstalk said a decision was expected tomorrow on whether the hospital would proceed with its plans to open at all.

The new €90m facility had held a careers fair as recently as last month, advertising for up to 100 clinical staff to work at the facility, which had planned to treat 39,000 patients a year.