October 7, 2024- According to Forbes, Hurricane Helene’s damage to Baxter’s medical supply production facility last week in North Carolina many have serious potential impacts on nationwide patient healthcare. The Baxter facility manufactures 60% of IV fluids used by healthcare institutions across the U.S., producing 1.5 million bags of IV solution daily, according to the American Hospital Association. IV fluids are a staple resource used in emergency care by emergency departments, operating rooms, intensive care units, ambulatory surgery centers, ambulances, and more.
In the coming months, rationing IV fluids will be an essential aspect of approaching the shortage. According to Forbes, many healthcare systems, depending on their specific vendors and supply chain, may only keep two weeks to a month of additional intravenous fluids available at one time, while others may keep larger stockpiles of up to three to six months based on consumption and supply chain distribution networks. Baxter has paused shipments at this time, and will be implementing allocations later this week, according to Forbes and Michael J. Apostolakos, M.D., FCCP, chief medical officer and vice president at the University of Rochester Medical Center.