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The planned new Dunedin Hospital has been designed with the future in mind and a health sector shake-up does not change that, Health Minister Andrew Little says.
"The project to build the new Dunedin Hospital won’t be affected."
Cabinet sign-off on the detailed business case was weeks, not months, away.
Mr Little said reforms such as scrapping district health boards and replacing them with a national entity would have implications for future hospital builds.
But planning for the Dunedin project was well advanced.
Dunedin list MP Michael Woodhouse said he would feel more reassured if the business case had been signed off and there was a construction start date.
University of Otago health policy senior lecturer Prof Robin Gauld said he was not sure the health system of the future had been adequately considered.
Some people would be treated through virtual technology and robots and this could make some building planning redundant, he said.
Clinical representative for the hospital build Dr John Adams said the needs of patients had been to the fore in developing the project and he hoped this would continue.