Healthcare Ready fully 'engaged' in response to Harvey

WASHINGTON — Tropical Storm Harvey has already brought more than 20 inches of rain to portions of southeast Texas since Thursday night with no signs of relenting, the National Weather Service reported Monday. Because the forward motion of Harvey has stalled, another 15 to 25 inches of rainfall is expected through Thursday.



Storm totals in some locations may approach 50 inches, producing devastating flooding in the area.



In anticipation of what was then Hurricane Harvey approaching the Texas coast last week,  Healthcare Ready, formerly Rx Response, had begun coordinating private healthcare stakeholders and government response entities around maintaining continuity of pharmacy care.



"Healthcare Ready has been in touch with the offices of the Departments of Public Health and Public Safety, the Texas Emergency Management Agency and several federal agencies to coordinate the sharing of vital information and response between the private sector healthcare industry with partner organizations and government to ensure that medical gaps in the impacted areas are addressed during the response effort," stated Nicolette Louissaint, executive director Healthcare Ready. "We will remain at 'ENGAGED' status until the situation in the Texas coast stabilizes. We will also monitor any potential damage to Louisiana, which may also be affected by the storm."



Rx Open, pictured in the graphic above, was last updated at 9:37 p.m. Eastern time on Sunday, Aug. 27. The green pointers depict counties with more than 90% of their pharmacies open; the yellow pointers identify counties with between 75% and 90% of their pharmacies are open; and the red pointers demak a county where fewer than 75% of pharmacies open.



Healthcare Ready is tracking the activation of the Emergency Prescription Assistance Program, which can be activated by HHS at the request of the impacted states. EPAP is a federal program which will provide free prescriptions for uninsured patients in the affected areas.



The American Red Cross is also providing clients in the shelters with up to $500 co-pay and medicine replacement assistance.  The American Red Cross has 30 shelters on standby for evacuees.



As the response and recovery effort continues, Healthcare Ready is working to ensure access to Tdap vaccines for both survivors and responders. Currently pharmacists in Texas are authorized to administer Tdap vaccinations. With potential damage of this scale there is a need to increase Tdap immunizations, which protect against tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis (whooping cough). Healthcare Ready is working with pharmacy groups on next steps to ensure adequate supply at both shelters and in community pharmacies.