New Orleans ? The federal government’s medical response to Hurricane Katrina was hindered by a lack of supplies and poor communication, according to a congressional report released Friday.

The report said the U.S. Department of Homeland Security didn’t do a good job of setting up field hospitals and handling medical emergencies in the Louisiana Superdome, where thousands of evacuees were stuck for days after New Orleans flooded.

The report, prepared by Democratic staff of the House Committee on Government Reform, was based in part on interviews with doctors who responded to the hurricane. It said the nation’s medical response system has been underfunded and mismanaged since it was taken out from under the Department of Health and Human Services.