Mercy-class conversions or purpose-built hospital ships?

Is the US Navy likely to replace Mercy-class hospital ships with purpose-built vessels?

Further conversions are considered more likely than a purpose-built successor.

The forecast is brief: the US Navy is more likely to convert another ship than order a purpose-built Mercy-class successor. No selected design, timetable, or approved program is identified. The judgment sits inside a wider argument that hospital-ship value is easier to recognize than to win budget priority for. It is a procurement expectation rather than a claim that a purpose-built medical ship would be technically inferior.