Rx Response mobilizes to respond to Hurricane Gustav

WASHINGTON With Hurricane Gustav barely missing New Orleans, several retail pharmacy, pharmaceutical and medical industry organizations have mobilized to respond.

Rx Response’s purpose is to provide a single point of contact between emergency management officials and the pharmaceutical supply system. It uses a network that allows the officials to communicate with it concerning issues that might affect the supply system, such as pharmaceutical needs. For example, public health officials in Louisiana and Alabama have asked it for a list of pharmacies that closed when Gustav made landfall so that they could direct patients to operating pharmacies.

The organization began almost two years ago in response to Hurricane Katrina and the threat of pandemic influenza. Its members include the American Hospital Association, the American Red Cross, the Biotechnology Industry Organization, the Generic Pharmaceutical Association, the Healthcare Distribution Management Association, the National Association of Chain Drug Stores, the National Community Pharmacists Association and the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America.