THESalbutamol, the bronchodilator drug of choice in asthma attacks, is increasingly difficult to find in Italian pharmacies. Its shortage, which has been reported for months now, especially puts children and the most fragile patients at risk, for whom there are no equivalent therapeutic alternatives. The associations Let’s Breathe Together APS And Food Allergy Italia APSthey wrote to Ministry of Health and to theAIFA to ask for urgent interventions and a structured plan that avoids new interruptions in the distribution of life-saving drugs. Behind the shortage of spray cans, a deeper problem is hidden: the fragility of a healthcare system that should be able to guarantee equity and continuity of care, especially for those living with a chronic illness.
«In recent months, the association Let’s Breathe Together APS has received numerous reports from parents of asthmatic children and chronic respiratory patients who report one increasing difficulty in obtaining salbutamol spray (MDI)a first choice and life-saving drug in asthma attacks”, explains Simona Barbaglia, founder of Respiriamo Insieme. «For months the association has been collecting reports from members and patients from all over Italy and trying to respond to needs with solidarity shipments organized between patients who can find it in their pharmacies and those who cannot find it. It is no longer acceptable that millions of children are exposed to this risk every day. Faced with a now unsustainable situation, we have decided to act together Food Allergy Italia APSsending two official reports: one to Minister of HealthProf. Orazio Schillaci, and one al President of AIFAProf. Robert Nisticò to ask for urgent and coordinated intervention”.
What is salbutamol and why is it so important
The salbutamol it is a bronchodilator, that is, a drug that relaxes the muscles of the respiratory tract and allows the bronchi to reopen quickly. It is the active ingredient contained in the most common asthma sprays. It works in minutes and can literally save life during an acute respiratory crisis, when the patient cannot breathe due to closure of the bronchi.
In recent months, however, salbutamol has become increasingly difficult to find. The cause could be a combination of factors: Problems in the global production chain, increased demand, difficulties in sourcing canister and propellant for Metered Dose Inhalers (MDIs). A perfect storm it has reduced the availability of the drug not only in Italy, but in many European countries.
The shortage has also been documented internationally: for example, a study published in Drugs & Therapy Perspectives notes how, during the Covid-19 pandemic, the massive use of salbutamol-based inhalers has caused “a drastic reduction in availability” in hospitals. A article of BMJ also reports that in the United Kingdom i Doctors have been urged to ration the drug to manage the severe shortage.
A deficiency that puts the most fragile patients at risk
As also reported in thelist of shortage drugs published by AIFA (updated to 14 October 2025), today the situation is as follows:
Broncovaleas MDI: no longer produced as of June 6, 2025;
Salbutamol MDI Sandoz (generic): no longer produced from 1 January 2024;
Ventolin MDI: in contingent distribution due to high demand and production problems.
In fact, the only drug currently available – Ventolin MDI – is difficult to find throughout the country.
This means that Thousands of asthma patients, particularly children under 12, risk being left without life-saving treatment in the event of an acute crisis. In fpediatric ax, in fact, there are no therapeutic alternatives to salbutamol spray.
A problem at European level
The lack of albuterol does not only concern our country. Both associations are part of European Federation of Allergy and Respiratory Disease Patient Associations (EFA)which is a member of the EMA PCWP, the Critical Medicine’s Alliance and the DG HERA Civil Society Forum.
EFA is urging European institutions to systematically address this emergency which is spreading across several member states.
The request of the associations
In the letters sent to the Ministry of Health and AIFA, Breathe Together APS and Food Allergy Italia APS asked:
- a timely intervention For restore the availability of salbutamol spray;
- a planning structured to prevent future shortages of life-saving drugs;
- a discussion meeting, also online, to share the patients’ point of view in decisions that concern them.
«As national associations committed to the protection of patients with respiratory, allergic and immunological diseases, we believe it is essential that the voice of the people and families involved is heard and valued in health policies», explains Barbaglia.
The full letters were sent on 21 October 2025 to the Ministry of Health and theItalian Medicines Agency (AIFA).
A broader look at respiratory health
The salbutamol crisis highlights a larger theme: equitable access to essential medicines. Patient groups ask that health planning consider respiratory health as a public priority, not as an occasional emergency.
Why Behind every missing can there is a story: a child who doesn’t sleep at night, an anxious parent, an emergency room that becomes a shelter. It is a fundamental right – the right to breathe – which should be guaranteed to everyone.