The switch
will increase the availability of pain and allergy drugs from GlaxoSmithKline
and Alcon.
Brian
Orelli (TMFBiologyFool) Feb 17, 2020 at 6:03PM Author Bio
The Food and Drug Administration approved three
drugs on Friday to switch from prescription status to being available over the
counter: GlaxoSmithKline's (NYSE:GSK) Voltaren Arthritis Pain and two
related allergy drugs from Alcon (NYSE:ALC).
The switch, which is typically initiated by the
manufacturer, will likely come with a lower cost for the medications, but the
companies hope to make up for it with higher volume since patients can walk
into a pharmacy and get the medications off the shelf without seeing a doctor.
Over the years, many pain, allergy, and heartburn drugs have made the switch
after the FDA became more comfortable with their safety.
GlaxoSmithKline's Voltaren Arthritis Pain was
originally approved as a prescription drug in 2007 to relieve pain for patients
with osteoarthritis. The drug is a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID)
in the same class as ibuprofen, although it's a topical formulation applied to
achy joints. The drug will remain approved for osteoarthritis but not for
strains, sprains, and bruises that other NSAIDs are used to treat.
Alcon persuaded the FDA to switch two eye-drop
medications that treat itching and red eyes due to allergies. Patanol, which
was originally approved in 1996, will now be called Pataday Twice Daily Relief,
while Pataday, which was approved in 2004, will now be called Pataday Once Daily
Relief. The drugs have the same active ingredient, the antihistamine
olopatadine, but the once-a-day formation is a higher strength than the
twice-daily formulation.
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