Florida hospitals fighting to get oxygen with "hands tied"

A shortage of drivers who are qualified to transport oxygen, as well as restrictions around how long truck drivers can be on the road—which went back into effect following the expiration of the public health emergency in the state—means that the supply isn’t getting to the hospitals that need it most.

There is “plenty of oxygen, just not in the right area,” Brig. Gen. David Sanford, director of the White House supply chain task force, said in an interview.

The fastest way to help hospitals that are running low on oxygen supply would be to move it from somewhere else in the state, Sanford said. Another solution could be asking industry participants to reallocate their own supplies in the state.

But absent certain transportation waivers, “hospitals are fighting with a hand tied behind their back and don’t have the same chance that they did when states had the public health emergencies declared,” said Soumi Saha, vice president of advocacy for hospital supply purchasing group Premier Inc.