Critical Care Tower to be delayed

Albuquerque, NM (KKOB) — Earlier this year, the University of New Mexico Hospital said their new Critical Care Tower with nine floors and nearly 200 beds, was expected to open in November of this year. Now, with factors including increased costs of materials and labor, the start date has been pushed back to June 2025. Hospital officials recently went before the Board of Regents Health and Science Committee, asking for approval to increase their budget by 15%. The 15% would translate the cost from $456 million to more than $537 million. UNMH says other factors that have caused a delay are complications with coordination between equipment manufacturers and architects. The hospital says the tower is 86% complete.