Alphabet Soup of Storms Spells Trouble for Patients, Providers

News

ATLANTA–Floridians are still cleaning up after Tropical
Storm Fay. As of Friday, 700,000 Louisianans were still without
power after Hurricane Gustav, and the federal government had issued
a temporary waiver of Medicare, Medicaid and SCHIP requirements to
ensure that affected beneficiaries will get the services and
equipment they need.

Those up and down the nation’s Eastern Seaboard were
preparing for a hit from Tropical Storm Hanna; NASCAR postponed
races in Richmond, Va., while in New York, the U.S. Open pushed
back its Saturday matches until Sunday. And once again, residents
and visitors in the Florida Keys had been asked to evacuate as
Hurricane Ike, a fierce Category 4 storm, tracked an uncertain
course that could threaten points along the Gulf Coast from Florida
to Texas this week.

In the midst of this season’s alphabet soup of storms,
government officials are reminding both health care providers and
their patients with chronic illness and disability to be aware and
prepared.

The Interagency Coordinating Council on Individuals with
Disabilities and Emergency Preparedness offers the following list
of Web sites for information and resources:

Current information on storms
from the National Hurricane Center: www.nhc.noaa.gov

Information on emergency
resources and activities in the following states:

Information on hurricane
preparedness: www.ready.gov/america/beinformed/hurricanes.html

Up-to-date tracking of weather
events where you live: www.weather.gov

This disability preparedness site also provides information on
how people with and without disabilities can prepare for an
emergency, along with information for family members of, and
service providers to, people with disabilities at www.disabilitypreparedness.gov/ppp/disabil.htm.

In addition, the site includes information for first responders
to help them better prepare for serving people with disabilities at
www.disabilitypreparedness.gov/emrscp/index.htm.

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