Healthcare Shift Aims to Address Longstanding Shortages

El Bruc will officially join the Penedès Regió Sanitària from 1 October 2026, following years of service cuts and unmet healthcare agreements between the Department of Health and the town’s municipality. The move, confirmed by the Generalitat and reported by anoiadiari.cat, aims to resolve chronic understaffing and poor access to primary and emergency care for the town’s residents [anoiadiari.cat]. Currently, El Bruc’s health centre operates under the Esparreguera Basic Health Area (ABS), which serves 28,516 people across El Bruc, Collbató and Esparreguera. Despite pressure from the town council, medical staff are not permanently assigned to El Bruc, leading to instability in service provision.

Residents Face Long Journeys for Care

For non-life-threatening emergencies outside clinic hours, residents must travel 27.2km to the nearest Urgent Care Point (CUAP) in Sant Andreu de la Barca. Hospital referrals require travel to Martorell, an overcrowded facility with ongoing delays in expansion. Public transport links are limited, increasing reliance on private transport at personal cost. A 2017 citizen platform gathered 1,000 signatures protesting the gradual erosion of services. Years of complaints went unaddressed until the Diputació de Barcelona supported the drafting of a Local Health Plan, finalised in January 2023, which outlined structural deficiencies and proposed solutions [diba.cat].

Benefits of the Transfer to Igualada/Anoia Rural

Under the new arrangement, El Bruc will fall under the Igualada/Anoia Rural health area, part of the Penedès region. Officials expect this will:

  • Maintain the current medical team with stable staffing
  • Reduce waiting times for specialist care
  • Improve access to multidisciplinary teams experienced in rural healthcare
  • Provide better public transport links to Igualada

Patients will retain access to the same secondary and tertiary hospitals: adults will continue to be referred to Bellvitge and children to Sant Joan de Déu. The Hospital d’Igualada, inaugurated in March 2026, has modern facilities with recent expansions in obstetrics, pharmacy, emergency services, and oncology, including an on-site chemotherapy unit that eliminates the need to travel to Barcelona for treatment [govern.cat].

The transfer represents a structural solution to years of healthcare instability, offering El Bruc residents more reliable and accessible services.

An integrated Basic Health Area (ABS) and CUAP unit is also planned to open soon at the Hospital d’Igualada, further streamlining care. A public information session was held on 12 July 2026 at El Bruc town hall to explain the change to residents.

Primary sources: diba.cat, govern.cat, Diputació de Barcelona, portaljuridic.gencat.cat. Reported by anoiadiari.cat, Ajuntament del Bruc, capsalud.es.