TLC Healthcare has put forward a $250 million public-private partnership proposal to redevelop the Rosebud Hospital site into an integrated health precinct, reigniting debate over how the ageing southern peninsula hospital should be rebuilt.
The proposal, announced by TLC on 12 May 2026, would include a rebuild of the existing public hospital, alongside a private day surgery, aged care, staff accommodation, childcare, allied health services, training facilities, a health club, aquatic centre and community spaces.
TLC says the project would proceed only if an agreement can be reached with the Victorian Government.
Public Hospital Rebuild Proposed
Under the proposal, the rebuilt public hospital would include an urgent care centre, 37 medical and surgical inpatient beds, 30 sub-acute beds, two surgical theatres, 14 dialysis chairs and nine day-medical chairs.
The broader precinct would include a private day surgery, consulting suites, radiology and pathology, staff accommodation, aged care suites, GP rooms, allied health services, childcare, training facilities and community health facilities.
TLC Healthcare chief executive officer and managing director Lou Pascuzzi said the proposal followed research into healthcare needs within a 25-kilometre catchment of Rosebud.
“We have completed the research, we know the definitive lack of services in this 25-kilometre radial catchment, and we have designed a precinct that addresses these exact needs in a sustainable manner.”
By-Election Debate Returns
The proposal lands only weeks after Rosebud Hospital became a key issue during the Nepean by-election campaign.
The Victorian Liberals announced a $340 million commitment in March to completely rebuild Rosebud Hospital if elected to government in November.
One Nation’s Nepean candidate Darren Hercus also pushed a public-private partnership model during the campaign, arguing it could provide a more realistic pathway to delivering the rebuild while keeping patient care at the centre of the project.
TLC’s proposal now gives that debate a real-world example, with a private healthcare operator publicly floating a model that would combine a rebuilt public hospital with privately operated health, aged care, childcare and wellness facilities.
Approval Still Needed
The proposal is likely to sharpen questions about whether Rosebud Hospital should be rebuilt through direct public funding or through a public-private partnership.
Key questions remain over who would control the site, which services would be publicly operated, which would be privately operated, and what protections would remain in place for public patients.
No agreement has been announced with the Victorian Government, and no final approval has been given.
For now, the proposal adds a new layer to the long-running campaign for better healthcare infrastructure on the southern Mornington Peninsula.
