How can I save money on Advair Diskus (fluticasone/salmeterol)? I don't have great insurance.

Asthma is incredibly common. You probably know at least a handful of people that must carry around an inhaler. So, what’s with the hefty price tag of such a widely-used, necessary medication? The average retail price of just three Advair Diskus (fluticasone/salmeterol) 250mcg/50 mcg inhalers is $1,400 in the United States.

Even with neighborhood pharmacy discounts and coupons available online for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) medications, we believe it would benefit you to check out international pricing. Hint: The brand-name Advair Diskus sold in Canada is 70% less than the one at U.S. pharmacies.

See Advair Diskus and its generic price comparisons below:

Prices collected June 2019

Is there a generic available for Advair Diskus (fluticasone/salmeterol)?

Advair Diskus 250mcg/50mcg (fluticasone propionate 250 mcg and salmeterol 50 mcg inhalation powder) is a twice-daily prescription medicine used long term to treat chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) for better breathing and fewer flare-ups. It may also be prescribed for the maintenance treatment of asthma in patients four years of age and older. It is not used to relieve sudden breathing problems and will not replace a rescue inhaler.

The generic, fluticasone/salmeterol, has been available to order from accredited international pharmacies for quite some time and has recently been made available in the U.S.

It doesn’t appear that Health Canada has approved the generic version in Canada yet.

Other Ways Cut Costs on Advair Diskus (fluticasone/salmeterol)

Talk to Your Doctor About Drug Prices

Ask your clinician for an alternative prescription, for the generic or a medication used for the same indication as Advair Diskus. Work with your doctor to choose an affordable option that your insurance plan may cover or is generally less expensive, either at your neighborhood pharmacy or an accredited international online pharmacy.

Advair Diskus Patient Assistance

We offer a search tool for patient assistance programs on our website. There are currently four different programs you can apply to for Advair Diskus financial assistance. You usually have to fall at or below 500% of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL) in order to qualify.

Neighborhood Pharmacy Discounts

Patients can take advantage of savings at their local pharmacy by using the U.S. Prescription Discount Card. Print out the card and keep it in your wallet or simply download it to your phone to use every time you go to the pharmacy. Americans receive significant discounts at all major chains and most independent pharmacies nationwide on not just Advair Diskus, but most prescription medications.

Is the Advair Diskus from international pharmacies the same as the one in the United States?

According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, some medications sold outside the U.S. are the exact same and others are not. In many cases, medications sold in Canada and the U.S. are made in the same FDA-registered plants; the only difference is the packaging.

However, many medications sold in Canada and elsewhere are not the exact same but are foreign versions of the ones sold in the U.S., meaning they are not identical. Such medications may be manufactured in plants that are not registered with the FDA and may contain different inactive, pharmaceutical ingredients. To keep this in perspective, the generic drugs sold in the U.S., such as atorvastatin, generic Lipitor, are not identical to the brand.

The brand-name Advair Diskus is a registered trademark of drug company GlaxoSmithKline. Advair Diskus is manufactured and distributed in the U.S. as well as in other countries, such as Canada. The active ingredients in Advair Diskus are fluticasone propionate and salmeterol inhalation powder. GlaxoSmithKline also markets this drug in the United Kingdom, although it goes by a different name: Seretide Accuhaler. Seretide Accuhaler is manufactured by Glaxo Operations UK Ltd, United Kingdom; or Wellcome Production, France; or Aspen Bad Oldesloe GmbH, Germany (as noted in the Electronic Medicines Compendium — a listing of medicines licensed for use in the UK).

Where is Advair Diskus manufactured?

Seventy-one percent of brand-name medication sold in the U.S. is manufactured outside of the U.S. according to PharmacyChecker research.

Packaging of Advair Diskus sold in the United States shows that it is made in England and North Carolina. We found packaging of the generic, fluticasone propionate and salmeterol diskus, that was manufactured in North Carolina.

Read more on Ask PharmacyChecker

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How can patients deal with drug price increases?

Do you have questions or concerns about ordering your medications online? We’re here to help.

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