(ALBANY, NEW YORK) - Brooklyn Faith Leaders joined New York State Legislators and Union Leaders - including United University Professions (UUP) President Fred Kowal (Pictured Above/UUP Photo Via Facebook), at the State Capitol in Albany to call on the Downstate Community Advisory Board (DCAB) to open its meetings to the public and schedule to more public hearings before an April 1st deadline to recommend a long-term plan for State University of New York (SUNY) Downstate’s University Hospital.

They also cautioned a price range to upgrade and expand the hospital cannot be set until the public has a full and fair opportunity to comment.

Public input must determine the funding needed to meet the long-term needs of the hospital, those who spoke at the rally said.

The DCAB, appointed by Governor Kathy Hochul to gather public input before submitting its report, is meeting behind closed doors and is not providing nearly enough opportunities for community members to provide insight and data that can be used to upgrade and expand the Central Brooklyn public teaching hospital, they said.

At a January 22nd public hearing, the first of only three hearings scheduled, it took nearly an hour before the first of nearly 40 concerned citizens was invited to speak.

Most speakers ran well past the two minutes allotted to them and talked over the meeting moderator - a SUNY-hired consultant - as she pressed them to wrap up their comments.

Her assistant held a digital clock with an alarm that sounded when a speaker’s time was up.

Expanding its public comment process may require the DCAB to push back its April 1st deadline to give the community more time to air concerns and offer solutions regarding Downstate, which treats more than 400,000 patients annually and turns no one away, regardless of whether they can pay for care.

Such an extension would give the DCAB more time to consider Brooklyn for Downstate’s plan for Downstate’s future.

The proposal includes upgrading inpatient services such as Emergency Department renovations, expanding and upgrading Maternal and OB-GYN services, establishing in-patient oncology care, modernizing Downstate’s Kidney Transplant Center, heart surgery and cardiovascular programs, and creating new Urgent Care and Ambulatory Surgery Centers.

The Faith and Union Leaders also thanked the Governor for setting aside $450 million in capital funding and $100 million in operating aid for Downstate in her 2025-2026 Executive Budget.

That’s in addition to $300 million in capital funding in this year’s State budget - which would need to be reappropriated in the approved 2025-2026 State Budget if is not used by the end of the fiscal year.

However, more funding might be necessary to incorporate changes and address concerns raised by community members at the January 22nd public hearing and at upcoming hearings scheduled for February 27th and mid-March.

To Continue Reading This Labor News Report, Go To: Press Release | Brooklyn community coalition, legislators, unions call for openness, transparency in long-range plan for SUNY Downstate University Hospital