A resident wears a “Save Providence” sticker at a public hearing about the hospital’s future on Wednesday. (Photo by Elly Yu / WAMU)

Patients, nurses and community leaders testified during a standing room-only D.C. Council committee hearing on Wednesday about the planned closure of acute-care services at Providence Hospital in northeast Washington.

“It will create a healthcare desert in our nation’s capital,” said Corey Lanham, with the National Nurses United union. Lanham and others who spoke said the hospital’s closure would further disadvantage those living in the eastern part of the District.

“The medical red line in D.C. has already been drawn and it runs down North Capitol street,” Lanham said.

Providence has said that it will transition out of “all services” except for its nursing center and “primary-care related services” on Dec. 14, 2018.

D.C. Council member Vincent Gray (D-Ward 7), who chairs the committee on health, called for the hearing, and told those who attended that he’s exploring legislative options to keep Providence from closing by the end of the year.

“I want to assure everyone that I’m committed to doing everything legally possible to keep Providence open for at least the next three years,” Gray said.

Council member Kenyan McDuffie (D-Ward 5) is working on emergency legislation that would require private hospitals to get approval by the District before they close services. The legislation is currently under review by legal counsel, the Office of the Attorney General, and the Office of the Chief Financial Officer.

Leaders from nearby hospitals, Howard University Hospital and MedStar Washington Hospital Center, also testified at the meeting.

Dr. Gregory Argyros, president of Washington Hospital Center, said that since Providence Hospital closed its maternal health and inpatient behavioral services last year, Washington Hospital Center has seen an uptick in patients. Washington Hospital Center is the closest hospital to Providence, about 2.4 miles away.

“We already treat 87,000 patients annually in our emergency department, so it’s very difficult to imagine that we could absorb much more,” Argyros said.

Providence has seen about about 50,000 patients in its emergency department annually, he said.

Ascension Healthcare, the non-profit organization that owns Providence, did not testify at the hearing. Gray said that the committee invited Ascension to testify, but the organization did not agreed to do so. Gray did say that Ascension was willing to meet him in private.

“They should be here facing the people of the District of Columbia,” Gray said. “I’m not having a private meeting. They need to be right here on the record just as you all are today.”

Ascension did not immediately respond to WAMU’s request for comment on the hearing.

Dr. LaQuandra Nesbitt, director of D.C. Health, said under current law, a hospital must notify the District of its intent to close at least 90 days before closure, but has no authority to approve a closure.

“There are restrictions in terms of what we are legally able to do.”

She said Providence officially notified D.C. Health of its intent to close acute care and emergency services on Sept. 14.

Meanwhile, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser sent a letter to the Archdiocese of Washington this week, asking the Archdiocese to be involved in the future of the Catholic hospital.

“I call on the Archdiocese to play a leadership role during this transition and to keep in mind my very strong desire that all involved in this hospital demonstrate greater accountability to those we collectively serve,” Bowser wrote.

This story originally appeared on WAMU.