A Northern Virginia woman who is currently hospitalized says the ongoing IV fluid shortage has affected her care.
"Normally they would put me on, you know, IV fluids right away," Jacqueline Meline told News4 from her hospital bed Thursday. “I have no way of getting fluids unless it's through IV."
Meline has cerebral palsy and has battled complications from the condition her entire life.
Last weekend, she was rushed to a hospital with an infection. She soon realized she was receiving atypical treatment at the hospital because of the nationwide IV fluid shortage caused by Hurricane Helene.
“Usually, they kind of give you a bunch all at once," Meline said. "But this time they had to give me, like, one bag at a time and then recheck my levels to decide whether I needed another bag or not.”
Hospitals across the country began to take steps to conserve their supplies after Helene struck Baxter International, the nation's largest supplier of IV fluids. The North Carolina plant is responsible for making IV fluids for most hospitals in the nation.
“The key word and the key concept here is conservation," said Julian Walker, with the Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association.
Health
Some hospitals in the country have postponed elective procedures due to the shortage. Walker told News4 no hospital systems in Virginia are postponing procedures, but that could change.
“This is, no pun intended, a fluid situation and so, you know, there may be changes. There may be adjustments along the way if this is a situation that endures for two or three months," Walker said.
On Thursday, U.S. Senators Mark Warner and Sen. Tim Kaine from Virginia, along with other senators, sent a letter to Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra urging the agency to do everything it can to up supplies of the fluids.
"After orders were recently cancelled, some providers have reported having only single-digit days’ worth of product on hand, while others are utilizing over the-counter oral hydration solutions like Gatorade — and fear reduced allocations of those alternatives as well. While providers are seeing promising results from HHS’s actions so far, we must ensure this progress continues,” the senators wrote in the letter.
“As you take the necessary steps to increase production of IV products at alternative domestic sites, facilitate the expedited arrival of additional product from overseas, and review product shelf life to consider extensions, we ask you provide clear and continuous communication to health providers on their options and the path forward as communities recover from this storm and any impact that may stem from Hurricane Milton,” the senators said.
Meline said she hopes to be out of the hospital soon. She commended her health care providers, who she said have been working to combat the shortage.
“The staff and everybody has been incredible with – and the nurses – have been incredible with advocating for me for the fluids that I need," she said.
Representatives for Baxter International said they hope to restart production in the coming weeks.
In a statement to News4, the D.C. Hospital Association said hospitals in the city were not experiencing any disruptions in patient care, and had adequate supplies on hand.
Below is DCHA's full statement:
"Due to disruptions created by Hurricane Helene, DC hospitals, like our colleagues from around the region and the country, are working together with emergency response agencies, such as DC Health and the DC Health and Medical Coalition, to understand current inventories of IV supplies and any alterations to distribution allocations. Hospitals are identifying, evaluating, and implementing conservation policies and practices, as necessary, to ensure current supplies are maximized until normal manufacturing can resume at North Cove or delivery from alternative sources can be secured. As conservation practices are implemented patients may receive medically appropriate, safe, and effective alternatives to IV treatments to keep them hydrated or receive medications. At this time patient care is not impacted other than the implementation of conservation practices. Our priority continues to be safe and effective patient care with minimal disruptions."
