Tampa General Hospital said it has stocked more than five days' worth of supplies at its facilities and plans to keep some trained staff on-site throughout the storm. In addition, the system moved more than 5,000 gallons of water to its Davis Islands campus to support operations and erected an AquaFence barrier to protect vulnerable areas from flooding.
As of Tuesday evening, 313 healthcare sites reported evacuations, including 179 assisted living facilities, 63 nursing homes and 17 hospitals, according to a news release from the office of Gov. Ron DeSantis (R).
Health systems are temporarily closing dozens of inpatient and outpatient sites through at least Thursday.
HCA Florida closed five hospitals — HCA Florida Pasadena Hospital in St. Petersburg, HCA Florida Largo West Hospital in Largo, HCA Florida Englewood Hospital in Englewood, HCA Florida Fawcett Hospital in Port Charlotte and HCA Florida West Tampa Hospital in Tampa — and a freestanding emergency department in Cape Coral. It is transferring the patients to other Florida facilities.
An HCA spokesperson did not give a timeline for when the facilities will reopen, but said the sites will remain closed until it is safe to reopen after the storm.
The spokesperson said about 200 HCA employees are overseeing the disaster response, which includes coordinating staff, medications, supplies and generator power.
Clearwater, Florida-based BayCare Health System is evacuating Morton Plant North Bay Hospital in Pasco County and temporarily closing its Bardmoor emergency department at noon Wednesday. As of Tuesday, the hospital had discharged nearly 150 patients, including 91 patients transferred to other BayCare facilities.
All BayCare ambulatory care sites, behavioral health outpatient locations and BayCare Medical Group practices will be closed Wednesday and Thursday.
The healthcare workforce is still recovering from Hurricane Helene, which battered the Southeast and took a Baxter International IV solutions plant offline in North Carolina.
"The reality is the magnitude of the storm, combined with the historic facility evacuation and IV solution situation, means this is going to be a very difficult time for patients in the most affected areas,” said Tom Cotter, executive director of Healthcare Ready, a nonprofit disaster preparedness organization.
Elective procedures are also on pause in many places.
Orlando Health canceled elective procedures Wednesday and Thursday at its Bayfront Hospital in St. Petersburg, in addition to modifying hours of operation at other facilities.
The health system is asking pregnant women near their due date not to come in to Bayfront's Center for Women and Babies unless it is a medical emergency. They are asked to contact their physicians about scheduled inductions or Cesarean sections and nonemergent conditions.
BayCare also canceled elective procedures scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday.
Some hospitals and health systems are offering resources to help residents and fellow providers.
Hollywood, Florida-based Memorial Healthcare System said it is not in the storm's direct path and can take patients from other systems.
Nemours Children's Hospital in Orlando also said it can receive patients from other systems if needed.
"We remain vigilant and prepared for a number of scenarios," Martha McGill, president of Nemours' central Florida region, said in a statement.
A BayCare spokesperson said state officials have asked to use a former Barnes and Noble building in Tampa, which BayCare recently purchased, as an emergency shelter. The health system is also working with health officials to transition the former South Florida Baptist Hospital in Plant City into a site for recovery efforts.
"We are fortunate to be a large health system with resources that can be shared and redistributed where needed most," the spokesperson said.
