During the 2008 Presidential campaign, Barack Obama said that asthma was a condition which could be treated with a breathalyzer.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cxxxGUeZtno[/youtube]
He has made good on that promise. And in so doing, drives up the cost of healthcare.
Asthma patients who rely on over-the-counter inhalers will need to switch to prescription-only alternatives as part of the federal government’s latest attempt to protect the Earth’s atmosphere.
The Food and Drug Administration said Thursday patients who use the epinephrine inhalers to treat mild asthma will need to switch by Dec. 31 to other types that do not contain chlorofluorocarbons, an aerosol substance once found in a variety of spray products.
The action is part of an agreement signed by the U.S. and other nations to stop using substances that deplete the ozone layer, a region in the atmosphere that helps block harmful ultraviolet rays from the Sun.
But the switch to a greener inhaler will cost consumers more. Epinephrine inhalers are available via online retailers for around $20, whereas the alternatives, which contain the drug albuterol, range from $30 to $60.
Hemingway links to Andrea McArdle, who notes that “environmentally-friendly” alternatives are almost always worse:
Er, industry also knew how to make low-flow toilets, which is why every toilet in my recently renovated rental house clogs at least once a week. They knew how to make more energy efficient dryers, which is why even on high, I have to run every load through the dryer in said house twice. And they knew how to make inexpensive compact flourescent bulbs, which is why my head hurts from the glare emitting from my bedroom lamp. They also knew how to make asthma inhalers without CFCs, which is why I am hoarding old albuterol inhalers that, unlike the new ones, a) significantly improve my breathing and b) do not make me gag. Etc.
So take a deep breath now. While you can.
DrJohn has been a health care professional for more than 30 years. In addition to clinical practice he has done extensive research and has published widely with over 70 original articles and abstracts in the peer-reviewed literature. DrJohn is well known in his field and has lectured on every continent except for Antarctica. He has been married to the same wonderful lady for over 30 years and has three kids- two sons, both of whom are attorneys and one daughter on her way into the field of education.
DrJohn was brought up with the concept that one can do well if one is prepared to work hard but nothing in life is guaranteed.
Except for liberals being foolish.
The inhaler issue started about 6-7 years ago-from the same pseudo-science BS that caused this one. They went from $5 up to as much as $100 EACH in some cases. You see, they had to reformulate them to work with the new propellant. As a result it is considered brand new medication, given a new patent, and the consumer is charged at “new medicine” prices as opposed to generic pricing.
I was a pharmacy tech at the time and it was mess. People were angry over the increase in price, upset over the vile taste, and especially mad that they weren’t getting the number of inhalations they should have from the inhaler. You see, the inhalers would often run out of pressure to spray long before they should have. Manufacturers eventually got this fixed, but the first six months were miserable.
This is a classic case of false economy.
If you have good medical insurance won’t all of us be paying more for your ”new, improved,” inhaler?
Yes…..
Before this, asthmatics were paying out of their own pockets for an over-the-counter product that worked so well they didn’t even have to see their doctors as often for prescriptions and check-ups about side effects.
Now, they will need more doctor visits and that’ll cost us all.
Their prescription inhaler’s cost will be subsidized by us all, too.
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If you don’t have good medical insurance won’t all of us be paying more for your ”new, improved,” inhaler?
Yes, under those circumstances, too…..
Remember when someone in the Obama stable, early in the ObamaCare debate, suggested that women under age 60 didn’t need mammograms so often?
The false economy of that was estimated to eventually cost us over 140,000 EXTRA DEATHS per year.
We don’t know what the false economy extra deaths will be with this ”improvement.”
But there will be some deaths involved.
EVERY one of them is ON OBAMA.
The EPA has no business practicing medicine.
Every unnecessary death diminishes us all.
Hang on to your toilets.
Talk about ugly getting uglier… the ability to do this was all put into play back in 1987 under Reagan by signing on to Montreal Protocol to reduce the amount of aerosols and ozone depleting chemicals.
ugh….
But the phase out of the inhalers started back in 2006, and the FDA finalization of the phase out was Nov 2008 while Bush was still POTUS
another ugh….
Since that hungry for power institution, the UN, isn’t making any headway on climate change legislation, they figured that use of the Montreal Protocol as a vehicle, with expansion to include the HFCs, is the “single largest chunk of climate protection” they could get, without having to deal with treaty signatories’ legislative bodies. Since the US signed on to the treaty, tho altered, Congress is not required to ratify the changes.
super ugh….
So this is just another example of ruling by regulations, conveniently put into place originally by Reagan, advanced under Bush’s FDA, and the final nail in the coffin by the current admin. Not exactly easy to pin this on any one POTUS or party, eh? They all shoulder this POS event.
This will also affect air conditioners and other cooling systems, plus appliances. Oh joy….
I’m still missing R-12 Freon. Grrrrrrr.
It gets better-both are a MUST READ
EPA’s greenhouse gas science didn’t follow its own peer review procedure, IG says
One telling passage from the story:
http://hotair.com/archives/2011/09/28/epas-greenhouse-gas-science-didnt-follow-its-own-peer-review-procedure-ig-says/
Next:
It’s the Thermometer, Stupid
http://www.nationalreview.com/planet-gore/278396/its-thermometer-stupid-greg-pollowitz
Since we’ve had record cold weather last winter and the ice depth at Antartica has been growing for the past two decades can we get our inhalers back…puhleeze?