Nearly a year after the threat of closure first galvanized Aquidneck Island families, advocates for Newport Hospital’s Noreen Stonor Drexel Birthing Center took their fight to the State House on Thursday — this time armed with legislation, a new 53-page white paper and a message that welcoming Brown University Health’s announcement last week was not the same as declaring victory.
Rep. Lauren Carson (D-Dist. 75, Newport) welcomed the Coalition for Newport Hospital Birthing Center, Aquidneck Island families, community leaders and health care providers to a rally in Room 135 of the State House, where speakers made clear they want more than a reprieve — they want a long-term commitment.
“We are heartened by Brown Health’s announcement last week that it would keep the birthing center open, but we want to know that this excellent facility is going to be provided the resources it needs to thrive now and into the future,” said Carson, who has led the legislative fight since Brown University Health first targeted the center for closure last summer. “We are concerned about its funding and about its future when Brown Health’s Massachusetts facilities are running deep in the red. We need a firm commitment to maternal health on Aquidneck Island and throughout our state.”
Brown University Health announced Friday that it plans to keep the birthing center — the only one on Aquidneck Island — open, but said it needs an additional $4.9 million annually from the state or donors to sustain it. Supporters at Thursday’s rally said that disclosure underscores why legislation is essential.
The rally preceded hearings before the House Health and Human Services Committee on a package of bills sponsored by Carson. House Bill 7272 would prohibit the closure or significant reduction of services at a birthing center without public notice, financial disclosure, a public hearing and Department of Health approval. House Resolution 8203 would condition state funding to Brown University Health on the continued operation of the birthing center. House Bill 7626 would enact the Rhode Island Maternal Health Improvement and Equity Act of 2026, establishing permanent statewide support for maternal health.
Speakers at the rally included Cassie Voll, chair of the coalition and co-founder of Moms Over Margins; Katie Hellendrung, a Middletown mother who has given birth to five children at the birthing center; and Adriana Chartier, a registered nurse at Women & Infants Hospital and member of SEIU 1199 New England.
Also released Thursday was a new coalition white paper, “Protecting the Future of Maternity Care in Newport County,” presenting what advocates describe as the most comprehensive data portrait yet of the birthing center’s role in the region. The report found the center is the third-busiest labor and delivery unit in Rhode Island, delivering close to 500 babies annually. It holds a consistent straight-A rating from the Leapfrog Group — the only maternity unit in the state with that distinction — and a Baby-Friendly designation from the World Health Organization and UNICEF. Its estimated economic footprint totals approximately $5.1 million in annual economic activity and roughly 33 jobs in Newport County.
“While Brown University Health’s announcement that they will keep the Birthing Center open represents an important step forward, questions remain about Brown’s specific plan to ensure the longevity and sustainability of the Birthing Center,” said Voll.
The stakes extend well beyond Newport, speakers noted. Melissa Blais, a labor and delivery registered nurse at Women & Infants Hospital, warned that her hospital — which already handles 80 percent of births in Rhode Island — is dealing with a staffing and retention crisis that would be severely strained by absorbing Newport’s roughly 500 annual births.
“Short staffing puts patient safety, staff well-being, and our professional licenses at risk every single day,” Blais said. “I cannot see how an already overstretched system will safely absorb the increase in births.”
Newport City Councilor Xay Khamsyvoravong, who first sounded the alarm at a special City Council meeting last July, said the issue is one of foundational priorities. “Fixing our health care system starts with ensuring access to high-quality primary and maternal health care,” he said. “Communities need to be resolute in ensuring the health care system hears that these are foundational priorities.”
The fight has been building since last summer, when Brown University Health — citing an $18 million operating loss driven largely by its Massachusetts facilities — signaled it was weighing closure of the center. The Newport City Council passed a resolution urging Brown Health to maintain services, a community advisory panel was formed in the fall, and a coalition of more than a dozen civic, labor, health and neighborhood organizations grew steadily through the winter.
Thursday marked the latest escalation of that effort — and advocates made clear they intend to keep pushing until the center’s future is secured in law, not just in promise.
