A tornado on Wednesday caused extensive damage to Pfizer’s pharmaceutical manufacturing facility in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, threatening critical supplies to hospitals across the country.
The company says that a quarter of the injectable drugs it supplies to U.S. hospitals are manufactured on its Rocky Mount property, which includes pain relief, patient sedation, and infection control during surgeries and other procedures. It is estimated that drugs used to combat disease are also included.
The company has yet to reveal the extent of the storm’s impact, but video footage of the scene and interviews with Nash County sheriffs and those briefed about the damage indicate that the tornado caused the worst damage to the company’s warehouses. It is shown.
On Thursday, Pfizer declined to comment on the medicines or percentage of its supply affected by the tornado, but given that many of these medicines required careful manufacturing and handling to ensure sterility. And this can be substantial.
It is also unclear to what extent this disruption will exacerbate existing national drug shortages, which remains the case today. 10 years tallest in the last few months. The hospital is on high alert because low-cost generic products made at the facility, such as the sedative propofol, are already among the most scarce products on the market.
“From a healthcare professional’s perspective, I’m just holding my breath,” said Michael Ganio, senior director of the American Association of Health System Pharmacists.
The tornado tore through a 26-mile strip in the Rocky Mount area about 80 miles east of Raleigh around 12:30 pm Wednesday. It broke off at the base of trees and threw homes 20 yards from their foundations, according to a police report. National Weather Service. The tornado reached wind speeds of 150 mph and then ripped off large pieces of the metal roof of the Pfizer building and overturned a lorry in the parking lot. Sixteen people were injured, but no fatalities have been reported.
Several officials said the tornado caused the most damage to the company’s warehouses. Mittal Sutalia, senior vice president of pharmacy contracts at Vijient, which provides drug contracts to hospitals, said the impact on manufacturing plants, and their ability to continue producing drugs, is not yet clear.
He said Pfizer and the Food and Drug Administration have sent a team to the site to assess the extent of the damage.
Dr. Stallia said Vijient is in contact with Pfizer, and said the Rocky Mount plant is producing propofol, which is used to sedate patients during surgery, as well as fentanyl and morphine, which are used in IVs for pain management. It added that it was manufacturing anesthesia products such as He also makes vancomycin, an antibiotic given to fight severe infections, and muscle blockers such as succinylcholine, which are also used in surgery.
Sheriff Keith Stone of Nash County, where Rocky Mount is located, told a local news reporter A large portion of the Pfizer building collapsed on Wednesday, with the roof shattered and as many as 50,000 pharmaceutical pallets destroyed.
Sheriff Stone said in an interview on Thursday that about 100 vehicles were also damaged, including forklift trucks scattered on nearby railroad tracks. “It’s really amazing to be able to show up so quickly, do so much damage, and disappear so quickly,” he said.
Pfizer spokesman Steve Dennehy said Thursday that the company’s Rocky Mount team is “working diligently to address and assess the situation,” but did not provide further details. The company said an employee survived the tornado without serious injury.
Pfizer plans to report its findings to the Food and Drug Administration, which is tracking the shortage.
“We are closely monitoring the development of the situation and are working with the company to understand the extent of the damage and the potential impact on the country’s drug supply,” said agency spokesperson Channapa Thantibanchachai. there is,” he said.
Established in 1968, the Rocky Mount facility employs 4,500 people and has 24 filling lines and 22 packing lines. While not as large as Pfizer’s manufacturing facility in Kalamazoo, Michigan, the North Carolina site covers 1.4 million square feet of manufacturing space. Pharmaceuticals manufactured at this facility are also shipped to Japan, Canada, Brazil and other countries.
The specific products manufactured in Pfizer factories and the market shares occupied by those products are generally not public information. However, the company Sell dozens of injectable itemsintravenous antibiotics, antiseizure drugs used in neurosurgery, and even antidotes for coral snake venom.
Many of Pfizer’s medicines were already in short supply before the tornado hit. About 130 products sold to hospitals were listed as “out of stock” and about 100 more were “limited supply,” according to the company’s list. out of 660 products.
Pfizer has other manufacturing plant In Kansas, New York, Massachusetts and Wisconsin, the company could shift some of its production to alleviate shortages caused by the destruction of the Rocky Mountains.
Soumi Saha, senior vice president of hospital drug contracting services provider Premier, said Pfizer has a good track record of building in some redundancy to manufacture products at multiple locations. .
If storm damage is confined to warehouses and does not affect production schedules at manufacturing plants, potential shortages could be mitigated, he said.
Dr. Gagnio recalled other drug shortages caused by disasters in production areas.
Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico in 2017, leaving hospitals scrambling for IV bags. Another incident occurred last year when production of contrast agents for CT scans and other medical imaging was delayed in areas of China hardest hit by the novel coronavirus. And in recent months, the survival rates of some cancer patients are at risk as Indian manufacturing plants have halted production after the FDA flagged a serious quality defect, doctors say. warns.
Concern that so many lives are affected, resulting in hoarding of certain drugs and bartering among supporters who trade and find scarce drugs for the most desperate. Given the shortfall, policy experts, lawmakers and federal officials have been discussing solutions in recent weeks.
On Thursday, senators passed a pandemic bill from the main health committee. It contained provisions aimed at stemming shortages and increasing drug company reporting alerting the FDA to situations that could lead to shortages, which could help the FDA prevent shortages. .
The bill also requires reporting to the FDA within 90 days of passage regarding the agency’s ability to address food shortages and whether additional support from lawmakers is needed.
Still, the spontaneous tornado outbreak was a stark reminder of the need to better manage the shortage.
“This reinforces the need to truly focus on supply chain resilience and preparedness, not just for the next pandemic, but for any unforeseen circumstances that will impact supply chains,” said Dr. Saha. Stated.
