The Healthy Newborn House will open in Covington with a ribbon-cutting on Friday.
The home at 1213 Greenup Street will provide housing and support for expectant and new mothers who are battling a heroin addiction. Mothers and their infant can stay in the home for up to four months after giving birth.
During this time, the moms receive life skills training, addiction support, education support, and assistance in looking for permanent housing.
The project was created by the Leadership Northern Kentucky Class of 2014 at the Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce. The class of local young professionals worked with Transitions, Inc. to provide support and funding for the house.
According to the statistics released by the class, 1,400 babies in Northern Kentucky were treated for drug withdrawal in 2012. The class also said that approximately half of the babies in the neo-natal intensive care unit at St. Elizabeth Hospital are addicted to drugs and that it costs roughly $55,000 to treat an addicted baby compared to $4,000 for a health baby.
The Healthy Newborn House hopes to combat those figures.
The ribbon-cutting ceremony begins at 10:30 a.m. and will be followed by tours.
Donations can be made by clicking here.
A video produced for the Health Newborn House is below:
