Deerfield-based Baxter International expects there to be shortages for some of its health care products for the rest of the year after Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico, where it has three manufacturing sites.
Baxter CEO Jose Almeida said in a call with investors Wednesday that the company, which makes renal and hospital products, does not expect to be able to “fully bridge the gap in demand in the fourth quarter.”
Baxter lost several days of production in Puerto Rico after the hurricane and has been powering its plants with generators.
Almeida didn’t specify which products Baxter will be short on Wednesday, but the FDA has been working with the company on the supply of its so-called mini bags, which are used by hospitals to give patients intravenous fluids and medicine. Following the hurricane, the FDA began allowing Baxter to import the bags from its facilities in Ireland and Australia. The FDA also has allowed imports from the company’s facilities in Canada and Mexico, Almeida said.
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The mini bags have been in short supply for years, and other companies also make them. But FDA Commissioner Scott Gottleib said in a statement this month that “the agency and Baxter recognized that further shortage of this product could potentially put U.S health care at risk.”
Almeida said Wednesday that the company’s Puerto Rico plants are “fully operational, but we need to make sure the federal government continues to prioritize support for the recovery of the island.”
The disruption in production will likely cost the company about $70 million in the fourth quarter of this year, though Baxter expects that loss to be offset by positive performance in other areas of the business, Almeida said. He said a number of Baxter’s products will return to normal supply levels by the end of the year, though others might not be fully back up until the beginning of next year.
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