Aside From Florida Nursing Home Tragedy, Most Health Facilities Performed Well During Irma
Just 10 of Florida's more than 300 hospitals were closed by the storm. While 150 of the 700 nursing homes lacked full power three days after Hurricane Irma struck, most had backup generators, according to the Florida Health Care Association. In Texas, a key federal official is looking at what lessons should be learned from Hurricane Harvey.
NPR:
When Irma Arrived, Most Florida Health Care Facilities Were Ready
Another hurricane, another health care horror story. At least that's how it looked when eight patients died at a nursing home in Hollywood, Florida. The facility lost its air conditioning several days after Hurricane Irma struck. That event conjured memories of the scores of elderly who died in Louisiana hospitals and nursing homes following Hurricane Katrina in 2005. But it would be misleading to attribute the Florida deaths primarily to Irma. (Hamilton, 9/19)
Health News Florida:
Hollywood Nursing Home Where Eight Died Wasn't On Priority List For Power Restoration
The nursing home where residents died following a hurricane-induced air conditioning outage was not on the priority list for power restoration, according to the facility's utility provider and Broward County officials. Emergency responders confirmed eight deaths last Wednesday at the Rehabilitation Center at Hollywood Hills, three days after Hurricane Irma knocked out power to the facility's air conditioning system. (Stein, 9/18)
Houston Chronicle:
Mobile Dialysis Centers Urged For Next Catastrophe
Seema Verma, administrator of the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, arrived in Houston on Monday not only to gather tales of Hurricane Harvey but also, and perhaps more importantly, to contemplate any hard lessons learned before the next disaster strikes. "I wanted to come and say thank you," she told a packed meeting room of employees and officials at a dialysis center near Brays Bayou. She then added she was sent by the Trump administration to ask, "How can we do better?" (Deam, 9/18)
Politico Pro:
Hurricane's Aftermath Threatens To Drive Up Uninsured Rate In Houston
Texas is asking the Trump administration for a Medicaid Section 1115 waiver that would create a pool to defray providers' cost of caring for victims of Tropical Storm Harvey. But the state has made no moves to extend coverage to people who might lose their health insurance in the aftermath of the storm. (Rayasam, 9/19)
