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US Senator Probes GSK's Halt Of Children's Asthma Inhaler

Hassan says choice reduces gain access to for low-income patients

Democrat implicates GSK of averting Medicaid refund responsibilities British drugmaker blames external aspects for decreased gain access to

GSK says it supports free inhaler program for eligible clients

(Adds GSK remarks in paragraphs 4, 9-10)

By Ahmed Aboulenein

WASHINGTON, June 27 (Reuters) - U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan stated on Friday she is introducing an examination into British pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline's decision to stop an extensively used asthma inhaler for kids.

Hassan said in letters sent on Friday to GSK and its licensed generic distributor, Prasco Laboratories, and seen by Reuters that the decision to eliminate Flovent HFA from the marketplace in January 2024 had actually added to a spike in hospitalizations and deaths connected to asthma problems.

She required documents detailing the reasoning behind the decision, and its financial and health effects.

"We remain committed to guaranteeing that development and affordability can exist together and are focused on enhancing health outcomes for clients," a GSK representative said.

Hassan, the top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee's Health Care Subcommittee, called on GSK to restore the inhaler to market. She also requested internal pricing files, refund information and communications with regulators by July 18.

She accused GSK of evading rebate commitments to Medicaid, which offers health coverage to 71 million low-income individuals and is among the most significant U.S. safety-net programs. In addition, GSK's decision to change the brand-name inhaler with a higher-cost authorized generic had reduced gain access to for low-income clients, Hassan stated.

"Children across the country have dealt with deadly medical challenges and households have come to grips with more expensive or less reliable alternative medications - when these choices are available at all," Hassan wrote in her letter.

GSK informed Hassan in response to an earlier letter she sent in May last year that Prasco controls pricing of the generic. Hassan said both business failed to guarantee affordability of the treatment, adding to hold-ups or denials of insurance coverage.

The business took steps to make the licensed generic more accessible when it introduced in 2022 however external factors impacted client gain access to, its representative said on Friday.

Prasco has actually because released a client help program in December 2024 that supplies totally free inhalers to qualified clients who can not afford it, the GSK spokesperson stated, and GSK has supported the program by offering Prasco with supply.

Hassan cited a Johns Hopkins analysis which discovered that GSK's move saved the company $367 million in 2024 Medicaid rebates while costing the program over $550 million. reported paying up to $150 per inhaler for the generic, compared to $10 for Flovent.

GSK stated last year it would top out-of-pocket expenses for all its breathed in asthma and chronic lung disease medicines at $35 per month for eligible patients in the United States starting January 2025, following similar moves by its rivals.

The statement followed lawmakers criticized producers over high rates, and released an examination to look into the rates at which these were sold in the United States versus other countries. (Reporting by Ahmed Aboulenein; Editing by Lincoln Feast and Mark Porter)