A registered nurse hangs an I.V. bag for a patient in the Emergency Room. (File/Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
One of the largest U.S. facilities producing IV and dialysis fluids, in western North Carolina, has temporarily closed due to flooding from Hurricane Helene.
The damage to Baxter International’s plant in Marion, about 35 miles east of Asheville, could lead to shortages of the key medical supplies in hospitals not only in North Carolina, but nationally. A levee was breached and bridges to access the facility were damaged, the company shared in a news release.
Officials are evaluating the damage to the North Cove facility — Baxter’s largest, with more than 2,500 employees — and will establish a plan “to bring the plant back online as quickly as possible.”
“Remediation efforts are already underway, and we will spare no resource — human or financial — to resume production and help ensure patients and providers have the products they need,” chair, president and CEO José E. Almeida said.
South Carolina’s public health director said Monday his agency is “working very closely” with health care providers statewide to ensure there’s sufficient IV fluid for patients.
“We are working with them to conserve supplies and make sure that while the federal government works with that factory to try and get manufacturing back on line, no one is denied medical care,” Dr. Edward Simmer, acting director of the S.C. Department of Public Health, told reporters at an afternoon briefing in Columbia, S.C.
The Food and Drug Administration has not yet declared any new shortages related to the closure, though the agency intends to coordinate with alternate Baxter facilities or alternate suppliers if necessary.
In a statement provided to NC Newsline, the North Carolina Healthcare Association (which represents the state’s hospital industry) said it and its members were “concerned” about the impact both in-state and nationally.
“In the meantime, North Carolina hospitals are monitoring supply closely, implementing conservation strategies, and working with their suppliers to ensure a continuous supply,” said Tatyana Kelly, NCHA’s senior vice president for planning/strategy and member services. “NCHA is also in contact with our representatives in the federal government to ensure all avenues to access additional supply are opened.”
In advance of Helene, several other industries had prepared for potential disruptions to key national suppliers.
That includes tech and semiconductor production, which relies on quartz mined just outside Spruce Pine. Companies operating two mines there shut down operations ahead of the storm; one of them, Sibelco, said recovery efforts have “made significant progress.”
SC Daily Gazette reporter Abraham Kenmore contributed to this report from Columbia, S.C.
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