"In our company, and this is normal for the entire industry, we are not taking any new customers," said Richard Lofgren, owner of Denver-based U.S. Welding, which distributes helium throughout the Intermountain West. "We're having a hard time meeting our existing customers' needs."

For companies such as U.S. Welding, it is "a significant issue," Lofgren said. But it's also "worldwide, not just in the United States or the West."

Not everyone is feeling the pinch, at least not yet. Darren Crowley, a spokesman for Intermountain Healthcare, said that the manufacturers of their MRI machines have not seen a reduction in supplies or significantly increased costs.

"We've really seen no impact on hospitals in the Intermountain Healthcare operation," he said.

But there are very real impacts, especially for the entertainment supplies that Grassley sells.

This weekend, for instance, PartyLand was planning on inflating a five-foot "cloudbuster" balloon over their new store in Lehi but had to look for different ways to advertise after they realized they did not have the helium to fill the balloon.

"It's like Subway running out of bread," he said, noting that balloon sales comprise as much as 10 percent of the stores' sales. "You really need helium if you're a party supply store."

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E-mail: jloftin@desnews.com