About DOH News Employment Notices and Recent Orders

NYC Health Department Celebrates Black Maternal Health Week With Focus on Justice, Joy, and Community Care

A Week of Workshops and Wellness Events Aims to Address Maternal Health Inequities, Offering Resources and Celebration for Black Mothers and Families Across New York City

April 9, 2026 — The NYC Health Department today announced a series of events in celebration of the nationally recognized 2026 Black Maternal Health Week. Celebrating its 10th anniversary, Black Maternal Health Week aims to connect pregnant individuals and their families with resources to support them through pregnancy and early childhood. Scheduled from April 11 to April 17, under the theme “Rooted in Justice and Joy,” each event is designed to address maternal and infant health inequities, as the NYC Health Department’s data show that Black non-Hispanic women are about five times more likely to die of a “pregnancy-associated cause than white non-Hispanic women.

“Supporting Black maternal health is essential, said New York City Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani. “On the 10th anniversary of Black Maternal Health Week, I’m proud to stand with the NYC Health Department in ensuring that expecting families are not left to navigate care alone. When we invest in Black families, we strengthen the very foundation of our city.”

“Black Maternal Health Week reminds us that justice and joy are not luxuries, they are essentials,” said NYC Health Commissioner Dr. Alister Martin. “When we create safe, welcoming spaces and connect families to resources, we don’t just address inequity, we nurture a future where every Black mother and baby can thrive.”

“Justice means channeling resources to disinvested neighborhoods,” said NYC Health Chief Equity Officer Dr. Zahirah McNatt. “At the Family Wellness Suites, joy and community care guide everything we do — from creating welcoming spaces for families, to helping parents with food insecurity, and maternal mental health. This work happens every day in our Family Wellness Suites, and Black Maternal Health Week allows us to shine a light on these efforts and invite New Yorkers in to access critical services for themselves and their families.”

“People say it takes a village to raise a child — that also means supporting whole families,” said Deputy Commissioner for the Division of Family and Child Health Lidiya Lednyak. “This Black Maternal Health Week, we’re proud to uplift supportive resources and opportunities to foster community that empower the New Yorkers we serve and address historic inequities.”

Black Maternal Health Week was founded by the Black Mamas Matter Alliance a decade ago, aiming to build awareness and foster activism and community building, amplifying the voices, perspectives, and lived experiences of Black mothers and birthing people. This year’s theme is “Rooted in Justice and Joy,” acknowledging the enduring legacies of systemic oppression, reproductive injustices, and health inequities that continue to impact Black maternal health, while calling for a liberated future rooted in restoration, justice, and joy.

In line with this year’s theme, the NYC Health Department’s 2026 Black Maternal Health Week programming features activities including Sugar Scrub and Paint and Sip, Belly Dancing, Yoga Classes, and Self-Care Bingo. The week also includes a presentation by the NYC Commission on Human Rights on birth justice and the rights of pregnant New Yorkers, and a discussion on the importance of doulas. The NYC Health Department’s Healthy Start Brooklyn program is hosting a community dialogue on Black maternal health just before the week begins. All events will be hosted by the NYC Health Department’s Family Wellness Suites, located in the Neighborhood Health Action Centers of Brownsville, East Harlem, and East Tremont.

The Family Wellness Suites provide safe, welcoming, and supportive spaces for family members to receive services, health education, and connections to infant and maternal health community resources. Services offered through the Family Wellness Suites include:

Education on childbirth and maternal and infant safety topics, such as hypertension and gestational diabetes, as well as infant safe sleep and car seat safety
Perinatal mental health classes that include an overview of perinatal mood and anxiety disorders
Parenting Journey workshops for improving parenting skills
Perinatal massage and yoga sessions and stress-management technique sessions
Reproductive health observances and special events
Breastfeeding support groups
Referrals to mental health services
Referrals to social care support services, such as home visiting, housing, food and nutrition, employment, education, and transportation needs

See below for the NYC Health Department’s 2026 Black Maternal Health Week Schedule. Some events are subject to change.

Brooklyn Prequel: Thursday, April 9, 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Location: Brownsville Community Justice Center, 50 Belmont Avenue, Brooklyn

10:00 a.m.: Breakfast and Networking
10:30 a.m.: Community Dialogue to Bridge Care and Community: Why are Black mothers and babies at higher risk during pregnancy and childbirth, and what can we do together to change that? Issues, solutions, and the joy of Black birth!

Brooklyn: Wednesday, April 15, noon to 3 p.m.

Location: Brownsville Action Center, 259 Bristol St., Brooklyn

Noon: Registration
12:30 to 12:45 p.m.: Welcome and Opening Remarks
12:45 to 1 p.m.: New Family Home Visiting Presentation
1 to 2 p.m.: Stress-Reduction Hour (option of sugar scrub, yoga class, and walking group)
2 to 2:15 p.m.: Human Rights Commission Presentation
2:15 to 2:30 p.m.: The IRTH (Birth Without Bias) App Presentation (IRTH is the top app for prenatal, birth, postpartum, and pediatric care reviews from Black and brown women)
2:30 to 2:45 p.m.: Healthy Start Brooklyn and Citywide Doula Initiative Presentation
2:45 to 3:00 p.m.: Lunch and Closing Remarks

Harlem: Thursday, April 16, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Location: East Harlem Asthma Center of Excellence, 161-169 E. 110th St., Manhattan

10 to 11 a.m.: Maternal Yoga and Belly Dancing
11 a.m. to noon: Human Rights Commission Presentation
Noon to 12:30 p.m.: Lunch and Self-Care Bingo
12:30 to 1:15 p.m.: DIY Sugar Scrub and Self-Care
1:15 to 2 p.m.: DIY Tea Time and learning about tea blends as a holistic approach for self-care

Bronx: Thursday, April 16, 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Location: Tremont Action Center, 1826 Arthur Ave., Bronx

9:30 a.m.: Breakfast
10 to 11 a.m.: NYC Commission on Human Rights Presentation
11 to 11:15 a.m.: Break and Vendor Tabling
11:15 to 11:45 a.m.: New Family Home Visits Presentation
11:45 to 12:15 a.m.: Milk ’n’ Mingle Session
12:30 to 1:30 p.m.: Belly Dancing Demo and The Importance of Doulas

In November 2023, the NYC Health Department launched HealthyNYC, a campaign created to improve and extend the lives of New Yorkers by addressing the leading causes of premature death, including maternal mortality. As part of this initiative, the department set a goal to reduce maternal death rates by 10% by 2030. To reach this goal, the NYC Health Department invested in a wide array of programs and services to support maternal health. Earlier this year, the City announced a $20 million investment in its Strong Foundations initiative, expanding eligibility for NYC Nurse-Family Partnership and perinatal and early childhood mental health programs for families. The NYC Health Department also operates the Healthy Mama House Calls program, a partnership between Healthy Start Brooklyn and Brookdale Hospital Medical Center, which provides a home visit by a midwife to postpartum patients who are at high risk for maternal morbidity and mortality. Since launching in March 2023, Healthy Mama midwives have visited more than 450 patients.

Last year, the City announced major milestones achieved by the Citywide Doula Initiative, including expanded access in disinvested neighborhoods and important strides toward better maternal health outcomes for Black and Hispanic women. By training local community members and supporting families, including those in homeless shelters and foster care, the program delivers culturally competent care during pregnancy and childbirth. The Citywide Doula Initiative has also developed policies to create more doula-friendly environments in hospitals. To date, almost 4,000 New Yorkers have benefited, underscoring the City’s commitment to equitable maternal health support. Doula support is also provided through Healthy Start Brooklyn’s By My Side Birth Support Program and the City Council-funded Healthy Women, Healthy Futures initiative. In September, the NYC Health Department launched the city’s first ever Neighborhood Stress-Free Zone (NSFZ) pilot in Brownsville, Brooklyn. The initiative was created in response to concerns raised by pregnant and postpartum New Yorkers and their families, aiming to expand access to maternal health education, social support services, and connections to mental and behavioral health care.

“It is a terrible reality that Black mothers in New York State are currently dying and developing life-threatening complications while giving birth at an incredibly alarming rate," said New York State Senator Gustavo Rivera, Chair of the Senate Health Committee. “In observance of Black Maternal Health Week, I am reaffirming my commitment to champion policies that will eliminate the systemic health disparities that exist for Black birthing mothers in the Bronx and across our state, in an effort to create safer and empowering birth experiences for them.”

“For far too long, Black mothers in New York City have faced unacceptable disparities in maternal health outcomes,” said New York City Council Member Lynn Schulman, Chair of the Health Committee. “These disparities are rooted in systemic inequities, not individual choices. I applaud the NYC Health Department for recognizing Black Maternal Health Week and for advancing a week of programming that both serves as a call to action and celebrates community care. By centering justice, uplifting joy, and connecting families to critical resources, this initiative helps move us closer to a future where every mother can experience pregnancy and postpartum with dignity, safety, and support.”

“Too many Black mothers in New York City still face preventable risks during pregnancy and childbirth. That is unacceptable,” said New York City Council Member Mercedes Narcisse. “In my district and across our city, we have a responsibility to close the gaps in maternal care that put Black women and their families at risk. As a mother, nurse and Council Member I applaud the Department of Health for bringing these resources directly to the communities that need them most.

“I have worked closely with community members, advocates, and health professionals to address the very gaps these events are designed to close, and the data make clear how urgent that work remains,” said New York City Council Member Jennifer Gutiérrez. “These are our neighbors, our constituents, our community. This week, under the theme ‘Rooted in Justice and Joy,’ we are reminded that fighting for maternal health equity is about both accountability and celebration, honoring the strength of Black mothers and birthing people while demanding better for them. I am proud of the progress we have made together, and I remain committed to doing everything in my power to ensure that every person in this city has a safe, supported, and healthy pregnancy and early parenthood.”

“2026 marks more than a decade of BMMA building the skills, convening, and mobilizing the global Black perinatal, maternal, and reproductive health workforce to END maternal mortality,” said Black Mamas Matter Alliance Inc. Co-Founder and Executive Director Angela D. Aina, who is also a 2026 TIME100 Health Honoree. “Over the past 10 years, BMMA has worked to establish the global Black Maternal Health Movement, centering the organizing and collaborative efforts of Black perinatal and maternal professionals. That is our midwives, our physicians, our doulas, our nurses, advocates, healing practitioners, and even artists. We have built this movement on the intellectual traditions of Black feminism, womanism, and the principles of reproductive justice and birth justice.”

###

MEDIA CONTACT: PressOffice@health.nyc.gov