Pharmac backtracks on asthma

Pharmac will allow subsidies to continue for asthma inhaler Ventolin, a backdown hailed as a victory for those patients who have complained about the subsidised alternative drug.

The Government agency had intended to withdraw state funding of Ventolin from July 1, paying instead for Salamol, another drug with the same active ingredient.

But yesterday, following 700 complaints about Salamol, Pharmac said it would subsidise both asthma relievers for two years.

Salamol will be free. Ventolin, currently free, will cost about $3.50 per puffer from July 1. Both will attract standard prescription charges of $3 to $15.

"This could be seen as a significant victory for people with asthma. I think it's people power," said Asthma New Zealand executive director Gerry Hanna.

He had predicted an increase in asthma deaths if Pharmac funded only Salamol.

Over 90 per cent of New Zealand's more than 600,000 asthma sufferers use Ventolin, according to its supplier, GlaxoSmithKline.

Patients have complained that Salamol's inhalers clog up and stop working, that they get less relief than from Ventolin, that the medicine tastes bad and the mixture contains a small amount of alcohol.

The Health Ministry's Medsafe drugs regulator commissioned independent tests of Salamol. It has preliminary results but is withholding them for several weeks until they are complete and have been considered by it and the Medicines Adverse Reactions Committee.

A copy of the preliminary report, obtained by the Herald, said new Salamol inhalers met their specifications. Sixty per cent of returned inhalers worked correctly and the rest did so after cleaning. More tests are being done, to check if the cleaning instructions are appropriate and to investigate one inhaler's failure to provide a uniform dose.

The supplier of Salamol, Asthma and Respiratory Foundation subsidiary Air Flow Products, said the tests found Salamol was effective and reliable when used in line with the maker's instructions - which include regularly washing the plastic delivery device.

"The tests ... completely exonerate Salamol," said Air Flow general manager Ruth Williams.

Auckland asthma patient Ian Lindsay, who had vowed to stick with his trusted Ventolin even if he had to pay the full retail price of $10-$12, said the backdown was "wonderful", but the likely $3.50 charge was less welcome.

"I would just hate to think that that would preclude anyone from opting for Ventolin."

A GlaxoSmithKline spokesperson was unable to say yesterday whether it would match Salamol's price, allowing Ventolin to be free to patients.

Pharmac medical director Dr Peter Moodie said the decision to retain a Ventolin subsidy was not based on the test results - time had run out for that.

"[Yesterday] was the last day we could do that to notify the market so GlaxoSmithKline could make a decision about what their price would be.

"If we could have left it a couple of weeks till Medsafe came through we would be more happy."

Pharmac's decision was based on the patients' complaints about Salamol, he said, although some patients had told the agency they preferred Salamol, which was widely used and popular in Britain.

He said there was nothing unusual about Pharmac's acting on patients' concerns.