Hospitals warn of IV bag scarcity after Hurricane Helene
Hospitals are urging the White Home to assist shore up provides of IV baggage after a North Carolina manufacturing facility closed due to flood harm wrought by Hurricane Helene.
A number of hospitals have carried out conservation plans and warned the general public of potential disruptions since Baxter Worldwide quickly closed a producing website in Marion, North Carolina, about 35 miles east of Asheville. The Marion manufacturing facility provided 60% of the nation’s IV fluids to well being amenities. The manufacturing facility additionally ships peritoneal dialysis options to dialysis facilities.
On Monday, Rick Pollack, CEO of the American Hospital Affiliation, urged President Joe Biden’s administration to take quick steps to deal with the “substantial shortages of those lifesaving and life-supporting merchandise.”
“Sufferers throughout America are already feeling this affect, which is able to solely deepen within the coming days and weeks except far more is finished to alleviate the scenario and reduce the affect on affected person care,” Pollack mentioned in a letter Monday to Biden.
The AHA, which represents practically 5,000 hospitals and well being care organizations, desires the Meals and Drug Administration to declare a scarcity of IV options and permit hospitals and well being programs to arrange sterile IV options in their very own pharmacies.
The hospitals additionally need the FDA to seek out worldwide suppliers of sterile IV options and to increase the shelf lifetime of all sterile IV and peritoneal dialysis options which are nearing expiration or have already expired.
Hospitals additionally need the Biden administration to:
∎ Invoke the Protection Manufacturing Act to compel producers to prioritize sterile IV options.
∎ Request that Xavier Becerra, secretary of the Division of Well being and Human Providers, declare a public well being emergency, which might calm down Medicare and Medicaid guidelines and laws.
∎ Direct the Federal Commerce Fee and the Justice Division to observe and act if the availability disruptions trigger worth gouging.
A number of hospitals have warned of provide disruptions.
Mass Basic Brigham, which operates a community of hospitals in New England, mentioned final week that it obtained solely 40% of its typical provide of IV fluid from Baxter.
The Florida Hospital Affiliation warned of provide disruptions of IV and peritoneal dialysis options due to the Baxter facility closure.
Pollack mentioned hospitals and well being programs have already carried out plans to preserve IV fluids and guarantee affected person entry to care and companies.
