Free Republic

Jan. 24, 2006 — A U.S. Food and Drug Administration committee voted 11-7 today to recommend that certain over-the-counter asthma inhalers, such as Primatene Mist, be taken off the market over concerns that they contain chlorofluorocarbons that could harm the environment. Chlorofluorocarbons have been associated with depleting Earth's ozone layer, which can in turn contribute to global warming and skin cancer. But another issue at hand, according to health experts, is that Primatene Mist may do patients more harm than good. The recommendation now means that the FDA will vote whether to keep over-the-counter inhalers on the market, said FDA...

An environmental effort to protect the earth's ozone layer could mean disruptions for the nation's millions of asthma patients. A federally mandated shift to a more ozone-friendly version of the hand-held inhalers used to quell asthma attacks is creating spot shortages of the devices, because production of the older versions has declined even before producers of the new inhalers ramp up fully. The shift is also giving a few drug makers the rare chance to introduce brand-name medicine into a market long dominated by low-cost generics. The drug at issue is albuterol, the leading prescription treatment used to open constricted...