WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), a member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, celebrated the announcement that AstraZeneca will cap the cost of more of their new inhalers at $35. This announcement comes after Baldwin launched an investigation into the extremely high prices pharmaceutical companies charge for inhalers that 25 million Americans with asthma and 16 million Americans with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) rely on to breathe.
“Today’s announcement will be a world of difference for families whose bill at the pharmacy counter is now capped at $35 for these inhalers,” said Senator Baldwin. “That is exactly why I launched my investigation on these price gouging tactics – to peel back the curtain on big drug companies that are jacking up prices and lower costs for Wisconsin families.”
Two of the four pharmaceutical companies, AstraZeneca and GSK, have announced plans to introduce a new, more environmentally-friendly type of inhaler. These inhalers were expected to be extremely expensive, placing them out of reach for millions of Americans. However, AstraZeneca has now committed to extending its $35 cap on out-of-patient costs for its current branded inhalers to its next generation, near-zero carbon propellent versions, once they are approved and sold on the market.
In January, the HELP committee launched an investigation into the four major manufacturers of inhalers and their efforts to keep prices far higher in America than countries abroad. In response to that investigation, three of the four manufacturers – Boehringer Ingelheim, AstraZeneca, and GSK- committed to cap patient out-of-pocket costs for their brand-name inhalers at $35. AstraZeneca’s and Boehringer Ingelheim’s caps went into effect June 1 and are already saving patients hundreds of dollars every month. GSK’s cap will go into effect no later than January 1, 2025.
An online version of this release is available here.
