Following pressure from the federal government, drug companies are saying they will put a limit on the price of asthma and COPD inhalers. | © Eric Seals via Imagn Content Services, LLC
(New York, NY) – Many Americans at the pharmacy will now see price caps on inhalers to treat asthma and COPD. A group of drug manufacturers, including the leading producers of asthma medications – AstraZeneca and Boehringer Ingelheim, have agreed to limit the out of pocket costs to $35 a month.
Healthcare professionals are hoping that the move gets people the medicine they need to ease up the number of patients going to the doctor for help.
An investigation by the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions found that pharmaceutical companies were charging higher rates in the US versus other countries like the UK and Germany. NBC News reports that even with health insurance coverage, inhaler costs can spike to $350 a month.
The move comes after a similar sign of progress by insulin manufacturers last year that also set price caps.
