The following is from the National Renal Administrators Association:
"Many of our members have received notice from Fresenius Medical Care of North America regarding the critical shortage of normal saline. Due to Customs import detention issues by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), they are unable to meet the current demand for normal saline.
"As you may know, normal saline is an essential component in the treatment of patients requiring life-sustaining dialysis therapy. The interruption in the supply of this product will affect the treatment of and access to care for ESRD patients across the country."
(from http://origin.library.constantcontact.com/download/get/file/1107293291594-111/NRAA+-+Saline+Shortage+-+FDA+-+2013-09-17.pdf )
The following is from an email the pharmacist at my hospital sent to everyone:
"The Normal Saline (NS) shortage continues. Thank you for all your hard work and diligence to reduce our usage.
• Please continue to use Lactated Ringer’s or other IV fluids if clinically appropriate. Pre-mixed fluids of NS containing potassium and D5 are available also.
• Because of the impact this has on the supply of all IV fluids, please discontinue IV’s and TKO IV’s as appropriate
• NS in 250 mL bags are available to the floors to utilized for boluses and urgent/emergent situations.
Additional updates will be sent as more information becomes available. Please contact me if you have any questions or concerns.
Your conservation efforts are greatly appreciated."
Thanks .gov!
Probably gleeful Obama aids holding up deliveries to punish states with governors not subscribing to Medicare expansion. IVgate.
With very few exceptions most of the calamities of starvation or deprivation have been caused by communist policies. That includes the shortage in this country of flu vaccine. Probably 100,000,000 deaths in the twentieth century were caused by deliberately bad policies, the Russian wheat shortage, for example.
Policies are not generally intended to cause calamity. But that is the result. It’s always the result when people who don’t understand economies try to make them work the way they think they should work rather than how they do work.
Has me thinking of unacceptable or even dangerous Chinese imports unless I'm reading between the lines wrong.
Why are we importing Saline?
Salt water? W-T-F America?
Something really wrong here folks when we can’t even make salt water.
Use coconut water instead, problem solved.
Find that 40 S&W ammo, and you will find the saline.
Especially with global warming and the sea levels on the rise.
Fresenius announces shortage of 1-liter normal saline product
September 18, 2013
“Fresenius Medical Care North America announced that there is a temporary shortage of its 1-liter normal saline product. Because of its high market demand the, Fresenius Medical Care 1-liter 0.9% sodium chloride saline product (SKU: 060-10109) is in short supply. The shortage is the result of an issue with customs affecting their production facility in Guadalajara, Mexico, which normally handles the increased demand for the product.
Fresenius said it has implemented a new order entry control and are also investigating secondary suppliers. Orders will be limited to one week’s worth of product at a time based on historical ordering patterns unique to each business, Fresenius said. “We anticipate this being a short-term issue and that we will be able to return to standard ordering procedures within the next few weeks,” according to a memo from Fresenius.
The National Renal Administrators Association sent a letter to the U.S. Food ad Drug Administration encouraging them to help make sure the matter is resolved safely and expeditiously. In response, the FDA stated their belief that the shortage issue has been resolved. The NRAA encourages members to continue to look for alternative sources of saline while the resolution process is taking place.”
FOUR MONTHS ago!?!
FDA heads need to roll. If there are problems with this particular supplier the the FDA should have others ready to meet the need. What did they do, turn the problem over to FEMA?
Cue Roberta Flak.
I see a commenter already noted that this opens the door to low (or no) quality Chinese imports.
But reading about how people have been turned away from hospitals without treatment because of Obamacare snarls that make obtaining authorization impossible, and now saline shortages, I wonder if they are trying to “prove” that Obamacare cuts costs? Or create a firestorm of complaints that they “offer” to solve with single payer? Or all of the above.
I would suspect someone has developed a method of turning it into some type of drug that can be smoked, snorted, or shot up, thereby causing the shortage.