MARION, N.C. — A western North Carolina plant that provides a bulk of intravenous and peritoneal dialysis solutions across the United States is on track to re-open a second manufacturing line as it recovers from the impacts of Helene in the region.
Baxter International shared the update Thursday, saying it expects to restart the line in the coming week. This comes a week after the main manufacturing line was brought back online.
Both lines represent about half of the North Cove, North Carolina plant's total production and about 85% of its production of one-liter IV solutions when operating at peak levels. The one-liter solutions are the most-commonly used size in hospitals and clinics across the country.
Similar to the restarting of the main manufacturing line, Baxter notes initial batches of IV solutions will be made with ongoing quality activities and would only be released in accordance with current regulatory requirements to ensure they're safe to use. The earliest the new solutions could ship will be in late November, ahead of the company's original expectations.
Baxter also said it expects to restart manufacturing lines for peritoneal dialysis (PD) solutions and irrigation by early December, barring any unanticipated issues that arise. The company also expects to have all production lines back online by the end of 2024, but it's still not clear when production levels will be restored to pre-Helene levels.
Additionally, Baxter said a second temporary bridge has been installed at the plant and is in operation as of Thursday. This should enable additional trucks and equipment to get in and out as needed. The first bridge enabled roughly 1,000 truckloads of finished IV product to get out of the plant and to customers.
The company also praised the support it received from state and federal agencies in helping with recovery.
Baxter was forced to close its plant on Sept. 29 because of the rain and flooding wrought by the hurricane. A levee breach was triggered nearby and bridges leading to the plant were heavily damaged. Regular updates about the plant's status have been promising given that Baxter supplies about 60% of the United States' IV bags. Baxter's shutdown had hospitals and clinics nationwide on edge -- healthcare company Premier estimated at one point that 86% of health providers faced IV fluid shortages, with smaller hospitals likely to report getting 0% of ordered fluids.
Baxter CEO José E. Almeida swore to spare no resource -- human or financial -- to resume production.
North Cove is located in McDowell County, about 108 miles northwest of Charlotte.
