Queens Hospitals Join Campaign to Reduce Premature Births

Two hospitals in the borough are joining a campaign to help reduce the number of premature births in Queens.

Representatives from the March of Dimes, local leaders and medical practitioners gathered at York College Thursday for the launch of  the Queens Healthy Babies are Worth the Wait program.  

The March of Dimes program is now available at Elmhurst and Jamaica Hospitals.

It includes consumer and professional education and public health interventions to help prevent babies from being born prematurely.

"The Queens community actually has one of the highest rates of premature births in the country - specifically Southeast Queens and Jamaica." said Mitchell Cornet, Administrator and OBGYN at Jamaica Hospital.

The March of Dimes says over the past 20 years the U.S. has seen a 30 percent increase in preterm births.

For more information go to marchofdimes.org.