LOUISVILLE, Ky. — It has been 50 years since Louisville had a maternity center west of I-65.
What You Need To Know
- Mary & Elizabeth Hospital is building a state-of-the-art birthing center
- The $20 million project should be completed in nine months
- Louisville Metro is providing $8 million in funding
- “The Birthing Place” will be the first maternity center west of I-65 in 50 years
Now, UofL Health's Mary & Elizabeth Hospital is nine months away from opening “The Birthing Place.”
"Families and women have to travel quite a ways in order to deliver babies, and we all know that emergencies can happen,” said Melisa Adkins, hospital CEO. “And we want to make sure that the communities we serve have the resources they need to deliver safe and healthy babies."
For a long time, Louisville's South and West Ends have been without a hospital birthing center, but a 21,000-square-foot renovation project at Mary & Elizabeth will begin a new chapter of care in the city.
The $20 million renovation project is well underway, and city and state leaders celebrated the next phase in the project, including Mayor Craig Greenberg, D-Louisville. Supporters held a sledgehammer ceremony as part of the festivities.
"We don't have a crane here today, but we do have sledgehammers," said Kim Schatzel, University of Louisville president.
Expected to open before summer 2025, Mary & Elizabeth will offer eight labor, delivery and recovery suites, a specialty suite for cesarean sections, a Level 1 nursery and more.