Billy Kelleher (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Xolair is a medication for the treatment of severe allergic asthma. The product was licensed for use in 2005 but is not reimbursable under any Government schemes. This means it is primarily a matter for hospital pharmacists to decide whether to dispense Xolair to people who have allergic asthma. All available scientific evidence and analysis shows that the medication gives a certain cohort of people great relief from allergic asthma. The current difficulty in respect of dispensation of Xolair is that its availability is determined by geographical location and the budget available to hospital pharmacies.

It is estimated that 450 people who suffer from allergic asthma are suitable for treatment using Xolair. If this medicine were prescribed to these individuals, it could have a life-changing impact. Ms Breda Flood, a board member of the Asthma Society of Ireland, stated the following about her treatment using Xolair:

After many years of severe asthma I struggled in everything I did. I was hospitalised on numerous occasions and had persistent infections, coughing and difficulties breathing. I have been on Xolair for a year now. After 4 months I saw an improvement and now after a year on the medication I cannot tell you how much this has changed my life and my family's life.

I can now go to bed and sleep through the night without having to take my inhaler during the night. I can walk without coughing and I can talk without coughing. Every day I get up I feel better. Xolair has given me a new lease of life and it has taken years off me. The improvement to the quality of my life is so great, it is impossible to quantify.

Ms Flood's experience indicates that Xolair should be made available to all patients for whom it is deemed a suitable treatment. Xolair is not available to patients in Cork University Hospital because the pharmacy budget is inadequate.

Speaking earlier about the geographical spread of discretionary cards, the Minister of State at the Department of Health, Deputy Alex White, stated variations in the way in which medical cards are assessed and granted are not right. The same logic applies in this context. Decisions on the dispensation of Xolair are based on geographical location, which means patients in some hospitals do not have any difficulty obtaining the drug, while patients in other hospitals, including Cork University Hospital, do not have access to it. I ask the Minister of State to raise the matter with the Minister whom I accept is detained in the Seanad.

Novartis, the company which manufactures Xolair, has agreed to reimburse hospitals in cases where the drug is found to be ineffectual. This is a fair offer as it will mean no costs will accrue to the State where the treatment does not work. I wish more companies would adopt the type of positive attitude shown by Novartis. I hope the Minister of State will be able to provide a positive response to the many people who suffer from allergic asthma.

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