Santa Barbara, Calif. - Humanitarian medical aid organization Direct Relief International today increased the pre-positioning of medicines and other essentials in Texas and Louisiana health centers in anticipation of Hurricane Ike's projected landfall this weekend.

Tapping its $45 million medical inventory and emergency funds, Direct Relief allocated additional prescription medicines and supplies to Texas's nonprofit community clinics and health centers that serve as the medical safety net. Direct Relief is coordinating with the Texas Association of Community Health Centers, the statewide organization with which Direct Relief formed a partnership three years ago following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

Three shipments going out tomorrow follow the recent delivery of 18 hurricane preparedness packs that were pre-positioned throughout Gulf State clinics in anticipation of hurricane evacuations and the Katrina/Rita scenario in which many evacuees sought care at clinics after being unable to obtain needed medications. The recipient facilities are:

· Amistad Community Health Center in Corpus Christi, Texas;

· David Raines Community Health Center in Shreveport, Louisiana, and;

· St. Gabriel Community Health Center in St. Gabriel, Louisiana.

The latter two recipients are expecting to see evacuees from Texas coming to their centers.

Direct Relief is licensed by the Texas Department of State Health Services as a wholesale distributor of prescription drugs, which allows the organization to provide safety net clinics with needed resources in emergencies and on an ongoing basis to assist their low-income patients without insurance for medicines.

About Direct Relief International Founded in 1948, Direct Relief International is a Santa Barbara-based nonprofit organization focused on improving the quality of life by bringing critically needed medicines and supplies to local healthcare providers worldwide. Direct Relief works in 59 countries and has delivered more than $1 billion in privately funded humanitarian medical aid to health professionals serving impoverished communities since 2000. Direct Relief is one of two charities ranked by Forbes that has received a perfect fundraising efficiency score for five consecutive years and is ranked by the Chronicle of Philanthropy as California's largest international nonprofit organization based on private support. For more information, please visit www.DirectRelief.org. ###