MedStar Washington Hospital Center nurses to hold press conference to protest maternal health cuts at D.C.’s largest hospital

RNs to speak out publicly against planned closure of postpartum unit 5F

Registered nurses at MedStar Washington Hospital Center (MWHC) in Washington will hold a press conference and protest on Thursday, June 18, 2026, to highlight critical community and patient safety concerns about management's planned cuts to postpartum services at their hospital, announced National Nurses Organizing Committee/National Nurses United (NNOC/NNU) today.

The press conference follows a wave of outrage among frontline staff after hospital leadership confirmed the permanent closure of postpartum unit 5F, which will eliminate 11 vital maternal health beds by July 26, 2026. Of all the babies born in D.C, 1 in 3 is delivered at MWHC. Between 2000 and 2018, all the obstetric programs were shuttered on the east side of the District, leaving none in Wards 5-8. MWHC and Howard University Hospital (HUH) have been the only options on the east side for nearly a decade, with MWHC providing the bulk of care.

"The east side of Washington, D.C., is a maternity health desert," said Korrin Gholston, RN in labor and delivery at MWHC. "Though Cedar Hill Regional Medical Center has since opened in Ward 8, it reported 100 births at its facility in its first year, compared to 9,100 at MWHC and 1,700 at HUH. Because of our proximity to Children's National Medical Center, our hospital also cares for the most at-risk newborns in ways no one else in the District can."

Who: Registered Nurses at MWHC and D.C. community leaders
What: Press conference and protest for maternal health safety
When: Thursday, June 18, 9-9:30 a.m.
Where: MedStar Washington Hospital Center, corner of Irving St. NW and First St. NW

"Families trust the medical staff at MWHC and plan to come to us for their care," said Stephanie Sims-Coates, RN in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). "In a city experiencing a maternal health crisis, the hospital's decision to close this unit is a significant mistake that will gravely impact those most affected by health disparities."

Community health providers who work directly with the District's most vulnerable populations also share these deep concerns.

"As a physician caring for D.C.'s low-income and immigrant communities, I see firsthand the systemic barriers our patients face," said Dr. Kate Sugarman, physician, community health advocate, and clinical faculty at GW School of Medicine and Georgetown Law. "MedStar Washington Hospital Center will directly compromise the safety of the mothers and infants I treat every day by shutting down 11 postpartum beds at Washington Hospital Center. MedStar has stated it is committed to addressing the District's maternal mortality crisis, but closing an entire mother/baby unit betrays that promise."

NNOC/NNU represents more than 2,200 registered nurses at MWHC.

National Nurses United is the largest and fastest-growing union and professional association of registered nurses in the United States with more than 225,000 members nationwide. NNU affiliates include California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee, DC Nurses Association, Michigan Nurses Association, Minnesota Nurses Association, and New York State Nurses Association.