In the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, North Carolina-based IV fluid factory, Baxter, is facing a long road to recovery, causing a supply shortage affecting hospitals across the country including facilities in Routt County.

The company is the largest IV fluid provider in the country, supplying about 60% of IV fluids to the U.S., according to the Department of Health and Human Services.

The North Cove facility located in Western North Carolina, which is Baxter’s largest manufacturer of IV fluids, closed for production in late September due to flooding caused by Hurricane Helene. The halt in operations has created major supply issues nationwide, leaving patients scrambling in the wake of a shortage.

Baxter is working as quickly as possible to get operations back on track, but until then, the Food and Drug Administration approved shipments from international Baxter sites located in Mexico, Spain, China, Ireland and the U.K. 

Initial shipments arrived in the U.S. on Saturday, according to the Department of Health and Human Services, and are currently being distributed. 

As for the hospital in Routt County, shipments are at reduced allocations. According to UCHealth, current allocations for Yampa Valley Medical Center are between 40-60%, similar to many other healthcare systems in the country.

In a statement, Baxter reported allocations are increased to 100% for all “standalone, designated U.S. children’s hospitals.” The company hopes to return allocations to at least 90% for all healthcare systems by the end of the year.

Baxter is currently encouraging nationwide conservation efforts and has provided guidelines on how to preserve supply for as long as necessary. Yampa Valley Medical Center is taking all precautions to conserve current IV fluid supply.

“UCHealth’s top priority is patient safety and well-being,” stated Lindsey Reznicek, communications strategist for UCHealth Yampa Valley Medical Center. “Due to the ongoing national shortage of IV fluids caused by recent hurricanes, UCHealth has implemented conservation measures to ensure IV fluids are available for all patients who need them.”

Conservation efforts also include avoiding excess fluid waste, using fluid replacements when possible and postponing some operations.

“UCHealth locations will begin postponing some non-emergent and non-urgent cases that require the use of large amounts of IV fluids,” said Reznicek. “The goal is to preserve our supplies for patients with emergent and urgent needs. Patients will be notified, and we will reschedule these cases as soon as possible.”

According to Baxter, over 2,500 employees recently returned to work at the North Cove facility after major recovery efforts were made in the last weeks. The company is now focused on equipment testing and deep cleaning the factory.

Although there is no timeline to indicate when operations will resume to full capacity, Baxter is aiming to resume full production as soon as possible.

Yampa Valley Medical Center is working hard to manage the repercussions of the supply shortage. All patients should note that they will be contacted directly if their procedure is impacted by the changes in operation.