of Asthma medicine prices have soared in the United States over the past decade and a half.
Jump – sometimes from around Just over $10 up to almost $100 For inhalers – refers to patients who require asthma-related products often have difficulty To buy them.Others simply I can not afford to they.
Worse, asthma disproportionately affect Low-income patients. Black, Hispanic, and Indigenous communities include; highest asthma rate.they also have shoulders the heaviest burden Number of asthma-related deaths and hospitalizations.climate change is likely to occur worsens the incidence of asthma And as a result, these disparities emerge.
I’m a health law professor villanova university, where i study whether patients have access to the medicines they need; And I’ve been watching this affordability crisis closely.
In many ways, this illustrates what happens when legal and policy decisions are not aligned with public health needs. But the good news is that there finally appears to be political will to rein in the prices of asthma drugs.
In 2008, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration banned inhaler It uses chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), which were once widely used as propellants because they can damage the ozone layer. FDA followed the schedule set by environmental treaties. montreal protocolwhich the United States ratified in the late 1980s.
Since 2009, CFC inhalers have been phased out and replaced with more environmentally friendly hydrofluoroalkane (HFA) inhalers. The price is also quite high. For patients with insurance, the average out-of-pocket cost for an inhaler rose from $13.60 per prescription in 2004 to $25 just after the ban in 2008. A 2015 study found that.
today, average retail price Albuterol inhalers cost $98. Unlike CFC inhalers, Generic versionHFA inhalers are subject to patent.meanwhile the medicine itself remained the same, but by switching to a different device, companies were able to raise prices.
In 2020, the FDA finally first generic version About albuterol inhaler. However, generic drug competition is still not strong enough to drive down prices significantly.
Patients with good insurance Payment amount may be very low Or even nothing. However, uninsured patients face higher market prices; Over 25 million Uninsured Americans. Even patients with insurance can have problems We found that the CDC offers asthma medications.
The same asthma medications that patients in the United States pay top dollar for are available in other countries for far less. Consider the following case of an inhaler.Pharmaceutical companies sold by Teva QVAR Ladyhalercorticosteroid inhaler, at $286 in the united states
In Germany, Teva sells the same inhaler for $9.
Some patients in the United States travel abroad to obtain cheaper asthma medications. Since his CFC ban in 2008, it has become common for patients to: Visit a Mexican border town Buy albuterol inhaler. What was being sold was Just $3 to $5.
A survey of inhalers available to U.S. patients in Nogales, Mexico, about an hour south of Tucson, Arizona, found that Mexican products were Almost equivalent to US inhaler. However, researchers found some differences in performance, suggesting that U.S. patients using these may be receiving slightly different doses than usual. There is.
There are also reports that Americans are turning to Canadian pharmacies to buy asthma inhalers at much lower prices. In one case, a US pharmacy would have charged him $857 for a three-month supply. The patient obtained it by $134 from Canadian Pharmacy.
US law has long been Ban Personal import of medicines. However, recent developments have shown that pave the way to nationhood To import cheaper asthma medicines.
In January 2024, FDA approved Importing certain prescription drugs from Canada for the first time. At this pointthis authorization is limited to Florida and only covers drugs to treat HIV/AIDS, prostate cancer, and certain mental health conditions.
If successful, the program could serve as a blueprint for other states.
Policymakers could also try borrowing a page from the insulin handbook.insulin price I’ve been climbing for almost 20 years. Before Congress capped insulin costs for Medicare patients. 2022 inflation control law We have set the out-of-pocket maximum for prescription insulin products at $35 per month.
If the cap had gone into effect two years earlier, 1.5 million Medicare patients would have saved about $500 a year. Recent studies have estimated that.That would have saved Medicare. $761 million.
A similar approach could be taken with asthma drugs.
Congress could enact rules specific to asthma, similar to the insulin case. Alternatively, provisions regarding asthma drug prices could be incorporated into larger legislation.
This approach will depend on the political environment, but there are signs that governments are becoming more proactive. In January 2024, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services hosted a meeting To discuss issues with manufacturers and other stakeholders.
That’s the beginning. And, along with other measures, it also offers hope that asthma medicines may soon become more affordable for those who need them.
—Ana Santos Rutschman Professor, Villanova Law School
