Study: Tri-State hospitals struggled during Sandy

When Sandy slammed into the Northeast nearly two years ago, hospitals were dealing with surges in patients, lost power supplies and employees who couldn't get to work — problems that a new federal report finds they were not prepared to handle. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Service's Inspector General Office released a study Wednesday on the emergency preparedness and response during the storm at 172 hospitals in the hardest-hit areas of New York, most of Connecticut and all of New Jersey. The report, based on surveys of the hospitals and in-person visits to 10 of them, finds that 89 percent of them experienced "critical challenges," such as electrical and communication failures or problems getting enough fuel or beds to meet their needs.