Ostomy supplies help Floridians use the bathroom. Now they're under threat.
Tampa Bay Times published article July 13, 2026
By Lauren Peace
For the last seven years, Lisa Donovon has used the bathroom by emptying a small pouch, hooked to her abdomen, into a toilet a few times a day.
The pouch, called an ostomy bag, makes it possible for Donovon to live freely. It connects to her digestive tract through a hole in her midriff and fits undetectably under her clothes. Without the bag, nothing would catch her stool — she'd leak.
Thousands of Floridians like Donovon, 81, rely on ostomy bags to maintain their quality oflife after issues with their digestive or urinary tracts required surgeries that disrupt their normal functions. But now, patients like Donovon fear a change to how Medicare contracts with the companies that supply ostomy bags to patients could disrupt access to vital equipment that an estimated 1 million people in the United States depend on to leave their homes.