FDA News Release
FDA Fast Facts: FDA’s Support of the Hurricane Relief Effort
- For Immediate Release:
For Immediate Release: Sept. 28, 2017
Media Inquiries: Megan McSeveney, 240-402-4514, Megan.Mcseveney@fda.hhs.gov; Jennifer Dooren, 301-796-2983, Jennifer.Dooren@fda.hhs.gov
Consumer Inquiries: 888-INFO-FDA
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is dedicated to supporting the U.S. response to the devastating hurricanes that have significantly damaged parts of our nation. As part of the hurricane response, the FDA has an important role to play with respect to ensuring the safety of the products we regulate, including medicines, medical devices, food, and the blood supply. The agency’s hurricane relief efforts include priority actions such as providing recommendations on how to handle food and medical products that may have been impacted by the storms, working with industry to assess damage and impact to facilities, to avoid–where possible–food and crop loss, and coordinating with federal and local partners to help identify solutions to prevent shortages of life-saving therapies.
“As we continue our concerted effort to provide needed assistance to citizens in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, we’re also diligently working to prevent–whenever possible--medical product shortages as a result of Hurricane Maria. Additionally, the agency is committed to help these facilities, which are vital to these local economies, get back to full operation. Our emergency operations team is taking the lead in FDA’s efforts on multiple fronts, from direct work with citizens to efforts to prevent medical product shortages,” said FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, M.D.
“Shortages have traditionally been handled by individual centers, but the unique logistical challenges in Puerto Rico require creative solutions and the ability to prioritize our efforts. By focusing our efforts through an expanded capacity we created as part of our emergency operations staff, we’re able to leverage their expertise and cross-cutting perspective to address and prioritize the potential for medical product shortages and work towards solutions more effectively with federal partners and industry.”
The following is an update on FDA’s hurricane response efforts:
Snapshots | By the Numbers (as of 9/27) |
---|---|
Overall Hurricane Response
Hurricane Maria Response
|
Overall Hurricane Response
Hurricane Maria Response
|
For more information on these and other FDA hurricane response efforts and advice:
- Hurricane Safety Resources Page
- Statement from FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, M.D., on FDA actions to bring relief to citizens of Puerto Rico; to help the island recover its considerable and economically vital medical product manufacturing base; and to prevent critical shortages of life-saving drugs made in Puerto Rico
- Statement from FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, M.D., on FDA’s immediate steps to respond to Hurricane Maria and ongoing recovery efforts related to Hurricanes Harvey and Irma
- Statement from FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, M.D., about crops impacted by Hurricanes Harvey and Irma and FDA’s work with farmers affected by the storms
The FDA, an agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, protects the public health by assuring the safety, effectiveness, and security of human and veterinary drugs, vaccines, and other biological products for human use, and medical devices. The agency also is responsible for the safety and security of our nation’s food supply, cosmetics, dietary supplements, products that give off electronic radiation, and for regulating tobacco products.
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