Two Cape Breton hospitals will close while two others will expand, CBC News has learned.
The province is set to make an announcement later today that Northside General Hospital and New Waterford Consolidated Hospital will close, while Glace Bay Hospital and Cape Breton Regional Hospital will be expanded.
The province is also expected to announce the opening of health care community centres to replace the two hospitals closing, however those would not be equipped with emergency rooms. The exact details are not yet clear.
Premier Stephen McNeil and Janet Knox, president and CEO of the Nova Scotia Health Authority, are expected to announce more details at 11:45 a.m. CBC News will stream the announcement live on this page.
Tammy Martin, the NDP MLA for New Waterford, said she's shocked by the news.
"So what's New Waterford hospital going to become?" she said in an interview. "What is happening with that — I would like to know. I'm sorry, I'm so furious right now it's unbelievable.