The proposed NYU Long Island School of Medicine at Winthrop Hospital was recently awarded $1 million in state aid.
The funding allocation is part of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s annual Regional Economic Development Councils competition, which awarded a total of $68.3 million to 103 projects on Long Island.
In November, NYU President Andrew Hamilton announced plans to open a medical school on Long Island at a University Senate meeting.
Hamilton focused on a potential shortage of primary care physicians. The new school located at NYU Winthrop Hospital would offer a three-year program, training physicians in primary care.
An April report by the Association of American Medical Colleges detailed how the nation could see a shortage of up to 120,000 physicians by 2030, having a widespread impact on patient care.
The new school would join Stony Brook University School of Medicine, Hofstra’s Zucker School of Medicine and New York Institute of Technology’s College of Osteopathic Medicine as the medical schools on Long Island.
The first steps of the accreditation process have been completed but there are still many remaining, including state approval, Hamilton said at the meeting. The school could be open as early as September 2019 if approved, he said.
The $1 million would come from Empire State Development grant funds, which are available for capital-based economic development projects intended to create or retain jobs and increase business or economic activity in a community or region, according to information from the regional development councils.
“Funds would be used to help support the construction of new classrooms and other facilities for medical students, if the application to both the Liaison Committee on Medical Education and NYS Education Department are approved,” an NYU Winthrop Hospital spokesperson said. “We’re optimistic and hope to receive word on our application sometime in February 2019.”
