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<h1 class="page-title"><span property="schema:name">HHS declares public health emergency in Texas as Hurricane Harvey forces hospitals to close, evacuate patients</span>
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by <a href="/author/ilene-macdonald">Ilene MacDonald</a> |
<div><time datetime="2017-08-28T14:54:44Z" property="schema:datePublished">Aug 28, 2017 10:54am</time>
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<div> <img srcset="https://qtxasset.com/styles/breakpoint_md_448px_w/s3fs/FierceHealthcare-1503932145/GettyImages-462453821.jpg/GettyImages-462453821.jpg?IZybzWxm9DhFFgygddtzbBS4CJ3215ej&amp;itok=pbK_zZ5d 448w, https://qtxasset.com/styles/breakpoint_l_640px_w/s3fs/FierceHealthcare-1503932145/GettyImages-462453821.jpg/GettyImages-462453821.jpg?UbO5Xz5NpYJFoJM2s18.9b7cuGEMfC_s&amp;itok=MdsKCNHJ 640w, https://qtxasset.com/styles/breakpoint_sm_800px_w/s3fs/FierceHealthcare-1503932145/GettyImages-462453821.jpg/GettyImages-462453821.jpg?W6GNbqr94SOItPD6Tym89IYm1urxuPej&amp;itok=26vFXQPl 800w, https://qtxasset.com/styles/breakpoint_xl_880px_w/s3fs/FierceHealthcare-1503932145/GettyImages-462453821.jpg/GettyImages-462453821.jpg?eRwFNKUbR1lc3FS71gCVUXVOaEWss40U&amp;itok=KGZU58_b 880w" sizes="(min-width:1220px) 880px, (min-width: 980px) and (max-width: 1219px) 640px, (min-width: 788px) 448px, min-width: 481px) 800px" src="https://qtxasset.com/styles/breakpoint_sm_default_480px_w/s3fs/FierceHealthcare-1503932145/GettyImages-462453821.jpg/GettyImages-462453821.jpg?kC3cy2k.2MkfR30sS6MS6hFD3Mc_pSQ8&amp;itok=jnb-2scn" alt="View of a flooded street" title="Flooded street (CREDIT: Getty/Creative RF)" typeof="foaf:Image" />
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<div>Severe flooding has left employees and patients stranded at several Houston hospitals. File photo of a flooded street by Getty/Creative RF/</div>
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<div class="social-share"><span class="a2a_kit a2a_kit_size_32 addtoany_list" data-a2a-url="http://www.fiercehealthcare.com/healthcare/hhs-declares-public-health-emergency-texas-as-hurricane-harvey-forces-hospitals-to-close" data-a2a-title="HHS declares public health emergency in Texas as Hurricane Harvey forces hospitals to close, evacuate patients"><a class="a2a_dd addtoany_share_save" href="https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.fiercehealthcare.com%2Fhealthcare%2Fhhs-declares-public-health-emergency-texas-as-hurricane-harvey-forces-hospitals-to-close&amp;title=HHS%20declares%20public%20health%20emergency%20in%20Texas%20as%20Hurricane%20Harvey%20forces%20hospitals%20to%20close%2C%20evacuate%20patients"></a><a class="a2a_button_facebook"></a>
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<div property="schema:articleBody"><p>The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center was forced to close nine locations Monday due to severe flooding from Hurricane Harvey—now a tropical storm—and several Texas hospitals have had to evacuate patients and operate on backup systems.</p>
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<p>The devastation from the storm led Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price to <a href="https://www.hhs.gov/about/news/2017/08/26/hhs-secretary-price-declares-public-health-emergency-in-response-to-hurricane-harvey.html">declare</a> a public health emergency in Texas. The action will allow the Centers of Medicare &amp; Medicaid Services to waive certain documentation requirements so hospitals and nursing homes that don’t have access to patient records can care for evacuated patients.</p>
<p>At least five people have died and more than a dozen injuries have been reported in the wake of the storm.</p>
<p><strong>UPDATE: <a href="https://www.fiercehealthcare.com/healthcare/hurricane-harvey-aftermath-public-health-crisis-continues-texas-hhs-sets-up-medical">Hurricane Harvey aftermath: Public health crisis continues in Texas, HHS sets up medical shelter, more hospitals shutter</a></strong></p>
<p>HHS has also <a href="https://www.hhs.gov/about/news/2017/08/27/hhs-continues-support-in-texas-and-louisiana-in-response-to-hurricane-harvey.html">helped</a> evacuate 182 patients from three hospitals in Victoria, Texas; sent 53,000 pounds of medical equipment and supplies to Texas and Louisiana, activated the AABB blood disaster task force to evaluate the need for nationwide blood donations, and has more than 500 personnel on the ground and 1,000 additional people on alert.</p>
<p>Employees who were at MD Anderson when the hurricane hit have remained on duty to care for patients. But roads to MD Anderson’s Texas Medical Center’s campus remained impassable and the world-renowned hospital told employees to stay home today and tomorrow.</p>
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<p>The <a href="http://www.katc.com/story/36227195/md-anderson-cancer-locations-closed-for-outpatient-services">images</a> of flooding and stranded residents and patients were reminiscent of <a href="https://www.fiercehealthcare.com/healthcare/hurricane-katrina-and-its-impact-healthcare-10-years-after-storm">Hurricane Katrina</a>, when dozens of hospital and nursing home patients died.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.harrishealth.org/en/news/pages/harvey-updates.aspx">Ben Taub Hospital</a> was supposed to evacuate patients on Sunday but was unable to follow through because rescuers could not reach its 350 patients due to the floods, The New York Times <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/28/us/hurricane-harvey-houston-hospitals-rescue.html">reports</a>. The newspaper reports six to 10 hospitals were also evacuated. Despite disaster preparations, Darrell Pile, chief executive of the Southeast Texas Regional Advisory Council, said no one was prepared for the “epic level” of the hurricane.</p>
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<p dir="ltr" lang="en" xml:lang="en">MD Anderson is closed for all patient appointments and surgeries today and plans to remain closed tomorrow, 8/29. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/houwx?src=hash">#houwx</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Harvey?src=hash">#Harvey</a> <a href="https://t.co/MsqEnJo5wA">pic.twitter.com/MsqEnJo5wA</a></p>
— MD Anderson (@MDAndersonNews) <a href="https://twitter.com/MDAndersonNews/status/902163720297742342">August 28, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<p>In the wake of natural disasters like Katrina and Hurricane Sandy, many hospitals have been rebuilt to withstand the <a href="https://www.fiercehealthcare.com/healthcare/after-natural-disasters-hospitals-rebuild-resilient-design">worst</a> of Mother Nature. Submarine doors were locked at the hospitals of Texas Medical Center in Houston, Texas Children’s Hospital, Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center and TIRR Memorial Hermann Hospital to protect lower floors, <a href="http://www.chron.com/business/article/Texas-Children-s-Hospital-closes-the-flood-gates-12003441.php">according to</a> the Houston Chronicle.</p>
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<a href="/topic/disaster-planning" hreflang="en">Disaster Planning</a> <a href="/topic/trauma-care" hreflang="en">Trauma Care</a> <a href="/topic/emergency-care" hreflang="und">Emergency Care</a> <a href="/topic/public-health-agencies" hreflang="en">Public Health Agencies</a> <a href="/keyword/hhs" hreflang="en">Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)</a> <a href="/keyword/tom-price" hreflang="en">Tom Price</a> <a href="/keyword/university-texas-md-anderson-cancer-center" hreflang="en">University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center</a> <a href="/keyword/ben-taub-hospital" hreflang="en">Ben Taub Hospital</a> <a href="/keyword/darrell-pile" hreflang="en">Darrell Pile</a> <a href="/keyword/southeast-texas-regional-advisory-council" hreflang="en">Southeast Texas Regional Advisory Council</a> <a href="/keyword/texas-medical-center" hreflang="en">Texas Medical Center</a> <a href="/keyword/texas-children-s-hospital" hreflang="en">Texas Children&#039;s Hospital</a> <a href="/keyword/memorial-hermann-health-system" hreflang="en">Memorial Hermann Health System</a> <a href="/keyword/hurricane-harvey" hreflang="en">Hurricane Harvey</a> </div>
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