Nurses from the New York State Nurses Association have delivered a 10-day strike notice.
The notice was delivered two days after their contract expired on Dec. 31.
The notices give hospital management 10 days to reach a contract for nurses, who say they want safer patient care and better healthcare benefits.
If agreements are not reached, as many as 20,000 nurses could go on strike on Jan. 12.
It would make it the biggest nurse strike in New York City history.
Nurses at the following 12 hospitals voted to authorize strikes:
- BronxCare Health System
- The Brooklyn Hospital Center
- Flushing Hospital Medical Center
- Interfaith Medical Center / One Brooklyn Health, Kingsbrook Jewish Medical Center / One Brooklyn Health
- Maimonides Medical Center
- Montefiore Medical Center
- Mount Sinai Hospital
- Mount Sinai Morningside and Mount Sinai West
- NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital Columbia University Medical Center
- Richmond University Medical Center
- Wyckoff Heights Medical Center.