Nearly a year after New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo proposed spending $700 million to rebuild the ailing Brookdale Hospital in Brooklyn, the funds remain unused, according to Politico New York.
Despite the fact there has been no real objection to the renovation project, the state has not announced a plan to allocate the money.
New York's health experts have long debated how to handle Brooklyn's struggling healthcare services. The borough struggles with a large Medicaid population, poor health outcomes and several bankrupt hospitals. Some experts have called for hospitals to close their doors, while others seek a refurbishing of services.
Gov. Cuomo announced the plan to spend $700 million on Brookdale Hospital in his 2015 budget. The plan was to build a new hospital to replace the existing one. Bob Megna, Gov. Cuomo's then-budget director, said the state would partner with another health system to help with the new hospital's construction and administration, according to the report. However, so far, the state has not identified a suitor.
In the meantime, Brookdale and other Brooklyn hospitals, such as Kingsbrook Jewish Medical Center and Wyckoff Hospital, are relying on substantial state subsidies. In 2015, Brookdale received roughly $100 million, according to the report.
State Sen. Kevin Parker has urged the state to find a solution to improve healthcare in Brooklyn. Conversations with the state health department are ongoing, he told Politico.