PRESS RELEASE JULY 19, 2023
Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA) urges authorities and clinicians to consider safety for patients as well as safety for the planet.
Inhaled medication is essential for people with respiratory diseases. The most commonly used type of inhaler, the pressurised metered dose inhaler (pMDI), contains propellants that have global warming potential. Legislation underway within the EU to address climate change will restrict the availability of these propellants. Too-rapid implementation of these restrictions would adversely affect the lives of many people worldwide – especially in low- to middle-income countries, which account for 96% of asthma deaths. Although new propellants are in development, it will take time for these to be approved and manufactured in sufficient quantities. Some medications are available in inhalers that do not require a propellant, but not everyone can use these. Inability to use an inhaler correctly can be life-threatening.
Optimal asthma treatment is best for people with asthma and for the planet, because it minimises the need for emergency health care and hospitalisations, which themselves have substantial environmental impact. Achieving this goal involves selecting the best treatment strategy and inhaler device for each patient, while at the same time considering the global impact of their asthma treatment.
Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA) calls on the EU legislators and all those involved in regulations relevant to inhalers to:
i) Ensure that medical supplies of current propellants remain available until inhaled medications with low global warming potential become available in sufficient quantities for all patients everywhere.
ii) Ensure sufficient time is allowed for new inhaler devices with low global warming potential to be developed and prescribed for vulnerable people such as young children, those with limited manual dexterity and people with asthma in poorer nations.
For the link to the paper in the Lancet for more information click here.