Following the harm caused by Hurricane Helene, Baxter International  temporarily shut down its largest manufacturing facility. This action raises questions about the availability of the medical products it produces it.
The North Cove flower, in , Marion, N. C., is not only the company’s biggest production hospital, with more than 2, 500 employees. In addition, it is the largest producer of pleural and iv treatment solutions in the U.S.; iv solutions are used in hospitals and other treatment settings to administer medications, maintain hydration, and/or treat electrolyte imbalances.
On Monday, it was unclear whether the plant’s shutdown will result in substantial shortages of the options for patients. In a media release released on Monday, Baxter stated that it is utilizing its global production system to reduce provide disruptions.
” Treatment efforts are now afoot, and we will give no resource — individual or financial — to continue production and help ensure clients and suppliers have the products they need”, said , José Almeida, Baxter chair, president and CEO, in the news release.
According to the business, Baxter put together its storms planning plan, which included moving goods to higher ground or acquiring storage prior to the storm. But a river was breached, leading to flooding at the plant. Additionally, the plant’s entry points were harmed.
Baxter said it will give an upgrade, as soon as it is able to, about when it plans to begin manufacturing.
Analysts from Wells Fargo wrote in a research note on Monday that it was still too early to determine whether the shutdown may change medical procedures in the , U.S., and that it would probably depend on how long the plant was shut down. They did point out that they do not assume that three different companies that produce IV solutions will be able to make up for some of the lost supply.
Erin Fox, associate chief store agent at , University of Utah Health , and an analyst on medication shortages, said a deficit is possible, given that activities such as shipping delays and snow storms can cause shortages.
” At this point, we do n’t know how significant the shortage will be but I do expect there will be supply problems”, Fox said.
In the event of shortages, it can be challenging for hospitals to have large quantities of extra intravenous solutions on hand. She claimed that hospitals may only have intravenous solutions ready for a week or two.
” You need it in very, very large quantities, so it’s very difficult to buffer against shortages”, Fox said.
During past shortages of the solutions, the , U. S. Food and Drug Administration , worked to bring in imported products and asked other companies to ramp up production of them, she said.
This is , not the first time , a hurricane has affected Baxter’s production. In 2017, Baxter products were in short supply after Hurricane Maria devastated , Puerto Rico, where the company had three manufacturing sites. Following that hurricane, the FDA began allowing Baxter to import its so-called mini bags — used by hospitals to give patients intravenous fluids and medicine — from its facilities in , Ireland , and , Australia. The FDA also allowed imports from the company’s facilities in , Canada , and , Mexico , at the time.
This latest disruption is expected to negatively affect the company’s financial results, Baxter said.
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