North Carolina hospitals reeling from Hurricane Helene may soon get some relief from a critical IV fluid shortage.
The Food and Drug Administration approved changing the expiration date on multiple types of intravenous and sterile fluids made by Baxter International earlier this week, the company said in a statement Monday.
Now, the fluids can be used up to two years after manufacturing instead of the previous one year, Baxter International said in a statement.
“This extension only applies to products manufactured prior to the end of September 2024,” the statement reads. “Details have been communicated directly to customers.”
There was a shortage of some IV-fluid products in the U.S. before Hurricane Helene forced the Baxter International’s North Cove facility to close, according to the AMA.
But the closure of the Marion, North Carolina-based facility made the shortage worse.
Baxter International is one of the largest suppliers of IV fluids in the United States with its North Cove facility providing 60 percent of the country’s IV fluid, according to the American Hospital Association.
The plant has been closed for weeks due to flooding triggered by rainfall from Hurricane Helene. The category four hurricane made landfall on September 26 in Florida’s Big Bend region and its winds and heavy rainfall impacted communities within a 500-stretch of the southeast.
But the company has plans to re-open at least part of the North Cove facility as early as this week, according to the Monday statement.
“We are encouraged to report that, barring any unanticipated developments, Baxter anticipated restarting the highest-throughput IV solutions manufacturing line this week,” the statement reads.
New batches of IV and other sterile fluids will be ready to distribute in mid-to late-November at the earliest, the company said in the statement.
“This is, however, ahead of our original expectations and is a testament to the urgency, diligence and resiliency of the North Cove and broader Baxter teams,” the statement adds.