$16M Upgrade Coming To Kings County Hospital's NICU, BP Says

BROOKLYN, NY — A nearly $16 million upgrade on the way to Kings County Hospital has become the last multi-million-dollar project in Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso's plan to improve maternal healthcare in the borough.

The borough president gave $15.63 million this week to the NYC Health + Hospitals Kings County facility to upgrade their newborn intensive care unit and mother-baby units, he announced Thursday.

The check is the last of three Reynoso has given out this year after announcing he would give all $45 million of his capital funding this year to improving maternal healthcare and reduce maternal mortality rates of Black pregnant people.

Studies show that Black pregnant people are 9.4 times more likely to die due to childbirth complications than their white counterparts, the borough president said.

“Environment is critical to ensure a birthing person, their support system, and their care team have not just the necessary space but the proper surroundings to make someone feel at ease, and triage any life-threatening situation,” Reynoso said of the upcoming improvements.

The funding will help renovate and transform a 22,500 square-foot space at Kings County that houses its NICU and mother-baby units, according to the BP's office. The renovations will include making the patient rooms single-occupancy for privacy and make them both more family-friendly spaces.

The borough president's capital funding plan has also included $18 million at Coney Island Hospital and an $11 million new birthing center at Woodhull Hospital, which made headlines in 2020 when a Black pregnant woman died during routine tests.

The hospital upgrades come after Reynoso created a Maternal Health Taskforce earlier this year. He said this week that this administration will also work on supporting outpatient services, social services, health insurance access and other underlying issues faced by people of color.