HHS Braced for Ike Effects; Texas Providers Implement Emergency Plans

WASHINGTON–As Hurricane Ike barreled toward Galveston, Texas,
last week HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt announced the continued
activation of more than 1,600 agency personnel to assist Gulf
states in preparing for and responding to the massive storm,
including support for medical evacuations that began late
Wednesday.

Under a mandatory evacuation order, as of Friday nearly a
million people had fled Texas’ Galveston-Houston corridor as
the Category 2 hurricane, packing winds of 105 mph, approached the
state’s northern coast.

The National Weather Service issued a warning for residents in
low-lying areas around Galveston stating those who ignored the
evacuation order faced “certain death.” But according to press
reports, more than 100,000 people in Texas’ coastal counties
ignored the order and remained in their homes.

In preparation, HHS activated the National Disaster Medical
System, a federally coordinated operation to assist state and local
officials in dealing with major disasters. Working with the
departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs, disaster medical
assistance teams helped to evacuate an estimated 200 patients by
air and many more on the ground from Texas health care facilities
on Wednesday and Thursday to other locations in the state away from
the storm’s path. Additional locations in Oklahoma and
Arkansas were prepared to receive patients if needed.

More than 550 U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps
officers were called to assist with medical evacuations and special
needs shelters, and all 6,000 such officers were put on alert,
ready to deploy to states that need assistance in responding to and
recovering from both Ike and Hurricane Gustav, HHS said.

Five federal medical stations–two in College Station, Texas,
and three in San Antonio–were set up to provide basic care to
medical patients who were evacuated from hospitals and nursing
homes. Caches of medical and pharmacy supplies were also being
moved into place.

Home oxygen providers in harm’s way had also implemented
emergency plans in preparation for a pending disaster scenario,
according to the Council for Quality Respiratory Care, whose
members include some of the nation’s largest oxygen providers.

“All home oxygen patients have unique needs that require
different oxygen treatments, which can become complicated when
planning delivery schedules before a hurricane. Providers across
the Gulf Coast region have completed their delivery routes and have
been supplied extra carts of cylinders for emergency use. If power
goes out in any branch, phones will be remotely routed to other
areas so patients have access to 24-hour emergency response
service. Providers are also constantly monitoring the storm and
will advise their drivers individually when reports of high winds
exceed recommended levels for delivery trucks to stay on the road,”
a statement from the group said.

“We have addressed emergency plans in each location and have
contacted high acuity patients to make sure they are safe and
understand their own evacuation plans,” said Andy Ingram, Apria
Healthcare’s vice president of operations, Mid South Region, which
services home oxygen patients in the Gulf Coast region. “Because of
the size and strength of this particular hurricane, we have also
alerted adjacent regional operation centers in the company to be on
standby in the event that assistance is needed outside of our
area.”

Late Friday, a number of states were already feeling the Ike
spike as gasoline prices soared after the fierce storm shut down
oil refineries along the Gulf Coast.

With the hurricane’s span at 500 miles, a strong storm surge was
expected to take a toll as Ike made landfall, but weather officials
said the major danger would likely be from high winds and flooding
as the storm churned inland.

According to the CQRC, widespread blackouts could leave home
oxygen patients without the use of stationary concentrators and in
need of hospitalization to stablize their condition. However,
Ingram said, “With the lessons we learned from Katrina and other
hurricanes, we feel that we are prepared to handle anything that is
thrown at us.”

HHS said its staff would also be available to augment hospital
staff in responding to the expected surge in emergency room
visits.

In Hurricane Gustav’s wake, HHS teams treated more than
1,300 patients and continue to provide care for 80 patients in one
Louisiana state-run shelter. Fifteen patient advocates from the HHS
Administration for Children and Families are assisting patients at
federal medical stations in returning to their communities. An
additional 15 HHS human services personnel are in Louisiana with
the new HHS case management demonstration program, which provides
personnel to help hurricane victims identify and access social
services programs.

HHS’ Leavitt also activated a new Emergency Pharmacy Assistance
Program for victims of Gustav that provides a 30-day supply of
replacement prescription medications and certain durable medical
equipment, such as wheelchairs and canes.

But with the size and ferocity of Ike–and the number of those
who remained to ride out the storm–Galveston Mayor Lyda Ann Thomas
told media, “We don’t know what we are going to find. We hope we
are going to find the people who are left here alive and well.”

Search-and-rescue teams were also in place, officials said, but
would not be able to respond until the hurricane conditions
subsided.

For additional information about HHS support for hurricane
preparedness, response and recovery, visit www.hhs.gov/hurricane.