Deal ensures more saline fluid will be manufactured onshore
Australia will have expanded onshore manufacturing of IV saline fluids after the federal government struck a $40m deal to expand onshore manufacturing of the critical medicine.
Australia will have expanded onshore manufacturing of IV saline fluids after the federal government struck a $40m deal to expand onshore manufacturing of the critical medicine.
The commonwealth has committed $20m to the expansion of Baxter Healthcare’s production facilities, with the company matching the spend with its own $20m investment.
It will expand local IV fluid production by an additional minimum 20 million units, to 80 million units each year from 2027.
Baxter has a production facility in western Sydney but struggled to meet demand for IV fluids last year when international supply shocks affected Australia’s overall IV fluid stores.
Saline fluids are essential to administer drugs and hydrate patients intravenously, and are especially critical in surgery when they are used before, during and after operations to maintain blood volume and the body’s normal functions. The fluids also combat dehydration, which is common after surgery given patients usually must fast beforehand and often do not eat or drink for some time after.
Hospitals were left with critical shortages of the medicine last year, prompting an emergency response in which the federal government had to convene a taskforce and scramble to secure extra supplies.
The Therapeutic Goods Administration blamed local shortages on multiple factors including global supply limitations, unexpected increases in demand and manufacturing issues.
The crisis exposed shortcomings in Australia’s medicines procurement policies, with state governments largely managing contracts and shortages and the commonwealth being accused of acting too slowly to ensure sufficient nationwide sovereign supply. Saline fluids are not a reportable medicine under commonwealth therapeutic goods legislation so the public was largely left in the dark about the crisis as doctors were forced to ration the fluids and patients undergoing surgery received less saline than they ordinarily would have.
Global supply shortages of IV fluids are expected to continue throughout this year.
Throughout 2024 the Albanese government worked with local producers and suppliers to secure supply of more than 22 million IV fluid bags and brought together a cross-jurisdictional Response Group that included all states and territories, private hospital representatives and the primary care sector through the Australian Medical Association.
Health Minister Mark Butler said the expansion in Baxter’s production would not only shore up sovereign manufacturing of saline fluids but also deliver local jobs at the company’s western Sydney plant.
“This is an extraordinary investment in IV fluid production,” Mr Butler said. “It will ensure we have a future made in Australia with onshore production to shield the country from global supply shocks that we have seen recently and through Covid.
“Baxter Healthcare’s facility has been an important part of manufacturing in western Sydney for 50 years, and this investment will help it expand to produce another 20 million IV fluid bags every year. It means more jobs, more bags of IV fluid, and less dependence on overseas production.”
The deal is part of a broader effort that aims to ensure Australia is guarded against such critical saline fluid shortages. Those efforts include the convening of a clinical review of their use in Australia to ensure the best use of IV fluids, and establishing a wider panel of suppliers to help reduce any future shortfalls.
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