Pharmaceutical company drops price of life-saving drug, but only until supply runs out

The pharmaceutical company which manufacturers a life-saving drug has agreed to lower the price of it, but only until their supply fully depletes.

The pharmaceutical company which manufacturers a life-saving drug has agreed to lower the price of it, but only until their supply fully depletes.

CityNews first brought you the story of PMS-Sodium Cromoglycate when it was removed from Ontario’s drug formulary and the price increased by over 450 per cent.

Aaisya Hussain is on the mast cell stabilizer medication to treat her respiratory and lung conditions, and to stabilize her mast cells, but was left without access to the drug because of the price increase. The drug is also used by people who have multiple medical conditions from common asthma, to chronic and severe lung conditions, mast cell diseases, and cystic fibrosis.

In a news release Wednesday, Pharmascience said they will be dropping the price to the lowest available in Canada which is $24.23 per unit, but only until it depletes its current inventory. They say this transition measure will “allow physicians time to consider therapeutic alternatives for their patients.”

It’s unclear if they will continue to manufacturer it once their current supply is depleted.

The company says the use of the drug, which is over 50 years old, has decreased significantly, over 95 per cent in the last 15 years.

In the last six months, Ontario and Saskatchewan have both removed the drug from their formularies at the request of Pharmascience, according to the province’s Ministries of Health. Quebec will be removing it as of Dec. 15.

Alberta, B.C. and Manitoba still cover it. Alberta has not seen a price increase but Manitoba has.

Pharamascience says this drug illustrates “the extreme difficulty for generic pharmaceutical companies to maintain the commercialization of old generic drug products with very low utilization rates.”

Hussain has told CityNews previously that there is no alternative option for PMS-Sodium Cromoglycate for her due to her specific condition and allergens.

She says as of Wednesday evening, according to her pharmacist, the price for the drug had not changed to the lower cost.

Pharmascience said they believe that formulary access to affordable, older, and rarely used drugs is an “important policy issue that needs to be addressed.”

“We will continue to work with governments and health care professionals to find alternative solutions that ensure we can support the availability of products that patients and prescribers want,” read a statement from the company.

A petition has also been launched on Change.org calling for governments to stop the delisting of this drug. It’s already been signed by over 18,000 people.

Dr. Matthew Stanbrook, an asthma and airway specialist spoke with CityNews prior to the price drop by Pharmascience, but said there has been an increasing phenomenon of pharmaceutical companies increasing the price of old, rarely used drugs.

Dr. Stanbrook said one short-term solution to this issue is a national pharmacare program. “The larger solution may be reinventing how we develop and sell drugs and maybe leaving things in the hands entirely of for profit.”

“While this is just one example for a few patients … it’s a symptom of a much larger problem that will become a bigger threat to the sustainability of Canada’s healthcare system,” said Dr. Stanbrook.

 

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