Cornwall Regional Hospital emergency wing eyes mid-2026 reopening

Officials expect the Accident and Emergency (A&E) Unit at Cornwall Regional Hospital (CRH) in Montego Bay, St. James, to begin receiving patients again around the midpoint of 2026.

Minister of Health and Wellness Dr. the Hon. Christopher Tufton outlined the schedule on Wednesday (May 6) at a Post-Cabinet Press Briefing held at Jamaica House in Kingston.

The emergency service had shifted to Mount Salem Health Centre so crews could carry out the hospital’s overhaul.

Dr. Tufton said the refreshed emergency suite would receive modern equipment aimed at supporting clinicians and improving visits for people needing urgent treatment.

“There is a target to open the A&E mid year this year, which is a very big positive because the A&E is four times as big as the Mount Salem Clinic, which is now hosting the A&E,” Dr. Tufton said.

“And it will be equipped with a number of positive things that will make A&E a lot more tolerable and easy to work in, both for patient and staff,” he added.

He noted that standing emergency services back up at CRH would let Mount Salem Health Centre revert to its earlier configuration and widen routine access for people living nearby.

Meanwhile, the broader phased reopening of CRH is expected across the 2026/2027 financial year, “barring any major unforeseen circumstance,” Minister Tufton said.

He acknowledged repeated slips in the construction timetable, identifying Hurricane Melissa in October 2025 as the latest disruption.

“We had some setbacks… they had a lot of raw material… in a warehouse on the compound and everything was destroyed with the hurricane. The entire place was blown down, and they sustained some minor damage on the building itself as did everywhere else,” the Minister explained.

He added that replacing goods sourced from China took longer because of wider international pressures.

Even so, Minister Tufton said the Government remains committed to completing CRH’s full return to service.