Frustrated Residents Mount Petition Calling for Opening of New Hospital in Costa del Sol Town

IN an event (or lack of it) similar to that surrounding the opening of the new La Linea hospital, residents in Estepona are frustrated that despite Mayor Jose Maria Garcia Urbano announcing last year that the hospital building was complete nothing has happened.

For more than a year, the building has stood empty due to unresolved issues between the Estepona Council, which paid for the construction and the Junta de Andalucia whose health service will be responsible for equipping and staffing it.

Local residents have a group PAIH, Plataforma para Apertura Integral de Hospital, dedicated to campaigning for the swift opening of what they see as a much-needed facility.

The group decided that a good way to break the deadlock was to collect signatures from people who would benefit from having a functioning hospital in the town.

“We are delighted with the public response”, said Chair of the group David Dominguez “Our petition is open to anyone with an interest, regardless of nationality.  People simply cannot understand why the building is empty at a time when due to the COVID virus there is intense pressure on the Costa del Sol Hospital, over 40 kilometres away.”

Other towns to benefit from the hospital will be Casares and Manilva and both patients and their families will find it quicker and easier to go for treatment in Estepona Hospital rather than La Linea or Marbella.