Fresh boost for Wonthaggi Hospital
State Government commits $65 million for new pharmacy, pathology clinic and medical imaging suite in stage two expansion.
Wonthaggi Hospital is set to gain a new pharmacy, pathology clinic and medical imaging suite, with the state government on Friday committing $65 million to the next phase of work across Bass Coast and West Gippsland.
The funding confirms the Wonthaggi site as a central piece of the government's regional health program, in one of Victoria's fastest-growing shires.
Minister for Health Infrastructure Melissa Horne said the package would also deliver critical infrastructure upgrades at West Gippsland Hospital and the Cooinda Lodge aged care facility in Warragul.
"We're getting on with delivering important upgrades at West Gippsland and Wonthaggi Hospitals, helping local families get care sooner while also supporting our dedicated hospital staff," Ms Horne said.
The new money builds on the $115 million stage one at Wonthaggi, which opened in November 2022.
That first stage delivered three new operating theatres, a procedure room, an 18-space emergency department and a 32-bed inpatient ward, lifting capacity by an extra 26,000 emergency department patients a year.
Stages two and three of the Wonthaggi redevelopment were pledged ahead of the 2022 state election at up to $290 million, with plans covering two new wards, a labour and delivery complex and a new outpatient clinic.
Friday's $65 million package is the first tranche of stage two work to be funded and scoped, with pharmacy, pathology and medical imaging all earmarked as priority services for the growing Bass Coast population.
Member for Bass Jordan Crugnale said the announcement was a direct continuation of that stage two commitment.
"The upgrades at Wonthaggi Hospital are part of our stage two redevelopment commitment and mean even more specialist services and healthcare can be delivered locally," Ms Crugnale said.
The state government also pointed to its wider regional health footprint, including the $223.5 million expansion of Latrobe Regional Hospital, a further $73 million for its stage two, new ambulance stations at Traralgon, Moe, Warragul and Morwell, and the new Phillip Island Community Hospital, whose first stage opened in 2025.
The Victorian Health Building Authority is now planning future stages of the Wonthaggi site.
Detailed planning for a new West Gippsland Hospital is also continuing, including consideration of possible uses for its historic buildings once the new site is operational.
