Inhalers containing and using chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) as a propellant have been removed from the market.
This rule has removed some medications that are used in the treatment of asthma and COPD.
The FDA states "The phase out of albuterol CFC inhalers is due to an international agreement called the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer. CFCs are harmful to the environment because they decrease the protective ozone layer above the Earth."
According to the FDA "CFCs are used as propellants (spray) to move the albuterol medicine out of the inhaler so patients can breathe the medicine into their lungs. HFAs are a different type of propellant (spray). The albuterol and levalbuterol HFA inhalers have a different propellant called hydrofluoroalkane (HFA). Albuterol HFA and albuterol CFC inhalers may taste and feel different. The force of the spray may feel softer from albuterol HFA than from albuterol CFC inhalers. Each of the HFA inhalers is different (see table below). Albuterol HFA inhalers have to be cleaned and primed to work in the right way and give the right dose of medicine. Each HFA inhaler has different instructions for cleaning and priming. The patient information that comes with each inhaler tells you how to clean and prime your inhaler." [12]