Hospitals, health care companies prepped for hurricane fallout

The health care world prepped for Hurricane Sandy by moving patients and shutting down offices.

ABC News: Hospitals Evacuate Ahead Of Hurricane Sandy
Ambulances lined the streets of Hoboken, N.J. in the relative calm before Hurricane Sandy last night as Hoboken University Medical Center evacuated patients in the predawn darkness. Hospitals along the east coast are preparing for the worst, which means postponing elective surgeries, stocking up on supplies, ensuring that backup power generators are ready to go, and, in some cases, evacuating patients (Lupkin, 10/29).

Fox News Business: Health-Care Companies Along East Coast Shut Down Offices
Some of the world's largest health-care companies, many of them based along the East Coast or with major operations there, closed sites and asked employees to work from home Monday as they braced for the approach of Hurricane Sandy. GlaxoSmithKline PLC (GSK) has closed about a dozen sites in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland and Massachusetts. Essential personnel may be asked to report to some sites, the U.K.-based company said. Glaxo also is building a new facility in the Philadelphia Navy Yard, which is near a flood-prone area along the Delaware River. Glaxo spokeswoman Jennifer Armstrong said the site's developers are taking precautions to secure it. The storm hasn't had any effect on distribution of medicines at this point, Glaxo spokeswoman Sarah Alspach said (10/29).