An angry crowd of more than 200 filled up and spilled over the Gateway Center

 An angry crowd of more than 200 filled up and spilled over the Gateway Center in Newport Thursday night, as a proposal to reimagine a Northeast Kingdom hospital drew concerns from dozens of community members. Now, health care leaders are working to find ways to cut costs and keep facilities afloat. Hospital CEO Tom Frank said he was shocked by the suggestions made. “When you make the recommendation of no OB services, no orthopedics services, turning our Emergency Department into a 16-hour urgent care and turn our in-patient beds into mental health beds, that’s basically saying close the hospital,” Frank said. The hospital told the crowd that they would not be closing. They condemned the report, the data within it and promised they already had their finances straight without having implemented the report’s recommendations.  David Murman of the Green Mountain Care Board said the report shows the hospital’s finances are not in a good spot, operating at a 9% deficit last fiscal year. “It was one of the hospitals that had one of the most concerning trajectories,” Murman said. The recommendations left those in attendance fearful. Murman highlighted the report’s biggest takeaways, addressing the housing crisis, staff shortages, a lack of transportation and shortage of mental health services.