Literature Review

Palm Harbor family suffers flood after Milton, less than month after mother dies from breast cancer ABC WFTS Tampa Bay, FL; by Jessica De Leon; 10/26/24 One Palm Harbor family is gutting the first floor of their home, destroyed by flood waters after Hurricane Milton. Cali Gignac’s childhood home is not in a flood zone or near any large bodies of water, yet more than two feet of water entered her parents' townhome and destroyed everything just a month after her mother died. “We haven’t had a chance to sort her mementos. We haven’t had a chance to grieve her or anything. And now it’s like... everything is garbage.” Now, they are trying to save what they can, sometimes stopping to take a snapshot of notes or photos that they find. But as tears come, they quickly move on, knowing they have so much to do.“Our photo albums are just, like, melting.”Editor's note: Click here for a public service educational video, "Community Crisis and Grief," with a significant section devoted to coping with "normal" bereavement in the midst of a community crisis. Disclosure, provided by Composing Life Out of Loss, a sponsor of this newsletter.

As IV shortage continues after hurricane, U.S. invokes wartime power to speed recovery CBS News; by Alexander Tin; 10/15/24 The Biden administration says it has invoked the wartime powers of the Defense Production Act to speed rebuilding of a major American factory of intravenous fluids that was wrecked by Hurricane Helene last month. Damage to the plant in North Carolina has worsened a nationwide shortage of IV fluids, and hospitals say they are still postponing some surgeries and other procedures as a result. Some 60% of the nation's IV supplies had relied on production from the plant, run by medical supplier Baxter, before it was damaged by the storm. "Ensuring people have medical supplies they need is a top priority of the Administration. It's exactly why we are working closely with Baxter to support cleanup and restoration of the facility, including invoking the Defense Production Act to help production resume as quickly as possible," an official with the Department of Health and Human Services told CBS News on Tuesday.

CMS grants temporary relief for home health, hospice agencies affected by hurricane McKnights Home Care; by Adam Healy; 10/15/24 The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has issued several temporary flexibilities intended to help hospices and home health agencies affected by Hurricane Helene continue to provide care amid the emergency. During the emergency period, home health providers may take advantage of extended deadlines for quality reporting and patient assessment requirements, according to CMS. The agency communicated last week that it would permit delayed Outcome and Assessment Information Set submissions, and it also extended the five-day completion requirement for patients’ comprehensive assessments to 30 days. These patients assessments may also be conducted remotely or by record view — a departure from the typical in-person requirement — during the temporary emergency period. CMS said that this change will allow patients to be cared for in the environment of their choice, reduce impacts on acute care and long-term care facilities, and maximize clinicians’ ability to care for patients with the greatest acuity.