Dramatic drug price increase leaves patients scrambling
Sodium cromoglycate is a safe, effective, no longer commonly used medication that's been around for more than 50 years. Suddenly it's become very costly for those who use it.
For patients like Robyn Fernandez, it's been a lifesaver -- literally.
"Basically, it gave me my quality of life back," the 24-year-old told CTV News Toronto. Fernandez lives with Mast Cell Activation Syndrome, an immunological condition which causes symptoms including anaphylaxis.
"It's basically your immune system is on hyper drive and overreacts to everything. And so it's sort of like when you have a superhero movie: my immune system is the superhero and whatever it decides is the super villain is the super villain and I'm the city being destroyed in the meantime."
Her explanation of the condition is lighthearted, but the effects of it are not.
"Anything can be a threat," Fernandez said, "it can just be a fabric you're wearing, it can be a scent in the air, it can be a food you're eating that used to be safe and now your body suddenly decides it's a threat. And then you can go into anaphylaxis and the next thing you know you're doing an EpiPen and you're in the hospital."
Since being diagnosed with the syndrome, Fernandez has been using sodium cromoglycate. The drug comes in nebules, which are inhaled into the lungs. In Canada, the drug is manufactured by Montreal-based Pharmascience Inc.
Earlier this year, the medication was removed from the Ontario Drug Benefit Formulary, meaning the cost is no longer covered by the province. Shortly after, those who use it found the price had gone up more than 400 per cent.
"No one's going to believe that the operating costs to make this drug suddenly soared 400 per cent," argued Dr. Matthew Stanbrook, a respirologist with the University Health Network.
"This is just an attempt to make money. It is not necessary, it is just the company trying to generate more revenue and, from a healthcare point of view, we should not have sympathy for that," Stanbrook said.
Stanbrook says the drug, which has been around since the late 1960s, was commonly used to treat conditions from asthma to allergies. But advances in medicine have led to other drugs taking its place for most patients. Still, he says, there is a small number of patients who require it.
"It holds the patients who require this hostage in a way, because they're dependant on the drug. The costs are ramped up beyond the point any individual could afford and it puts insurance companies and the third-party payers like governments in a really difficult situation."
Use of the drug has dropped more than 95 per cent in the last 15 years, according to its manufacturer. In a press release on Wednesday, Pharmascience Inc. says "the case of sodium cromoglycate illustrates well the extreme difficulty for generic pharmaceutical companies to maintain the commercialization of old generic drug products with very low utilization rates.”
The company said it is reducing the cost of the nebulizer solution to what it calls the "lowest price available in Canada".
However, even that won't help Fernandez who says the price increase makes it impossible to afford the drug. “I won't be able to take my medication anymore," she said.
The company said the cost reduction will remain in place until current inventory is depleted, providing time for physicians to find alternative therapeutics for their patients. But that may not be possible for everyone. Dr. Stanbrook calls it a "bad trade-off" that may lead to further complications for patients.
"For these few patients who depend on this, it might be trading this medication that has relatively few side-effects and is very well tolerated, for a medication that could have a lot of side-effects."
And for Fernandez, it might not be an option. She says, “There is no alternative. I talked to my pharmacy, there is no alternative. My allergist was saying we don't know what we're going to do after this because there's nothing left."
Fernandez hopes the drug will be re-added to the Ontario Drug Benefit Formulary, so she can continue to take it.
"I need it to be covered so that I can breathe and eat without going in to debt or being in a hospital all of the time."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'One of the single most terrifying things ever': Ontario couple among passengers on sinking tour boat in Dominican Republic
A Toronto couple are speaking out about their “extremely dangerous” experience on board a sinking tour boat in the Dominican Republic last week.
Half of Canadians have negative opinion of latest Liberal budget: poll
A new poll suggests the Liberals have not won over voters with their latest budget, though there is broad support for their plan to build millions of homes.
opinion Why you should protect your investments by naming a trusted contact person
Appointing a trusted person to help with financial obligations can give you peace of mind. In his personal finance column for CTVNews.ca, Christopher Liew outlines the key benefits of naming a confidant to take over your financial responsibilities, if the need ever arises.
Teacher shortages see some Ontario high school students awarded perfect grades on midterm exams
Students at a high school in York Region have been awarded perfect marks on their midterm exams in three subjects – not because of their academic performances however, but because they had no teacher.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
Ottawa injects another $36M into vaccine injury compensation fund
The federal government has added $36.4 million to a program designed to support people who have been seriously injured or killed by vaccines since the end of 2020.
Photographer alleges he was forced to watch Megan Thee Stallion have sex and was unfairly fired
A photographer who worked for Megan Thee Stallion said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that he was forced to watch her have sex, was unfairly fired soon after and was abused as her employee.
An Ontario senior thought he called Geek Squad for help with his printer. Instead, he got scammed out of $25,000
An Ontario senior’s attempt to get technical help online led him into a spoofing scam where he lost $25,000. Now, he’s sharing his story to warn others.
Her fiance has been in prison for 49 years. She's trying to free him before it’s too late
She was lying in bed on a Thursday morning, thinking about the man she loved, hoping to win his freedom before time ran out.