Janey Lawson’s last asthma attack landed her in the emergency room.  Unemployed and uninsured for the past year, Janey ran out of the medications she needs to manage her condition and could not afford to fill her prescriptions.

Janey found help after visiting Compassionate Care, a local safety net clinic -- one of hundreds of safety net health care partners that receive donated medications from AmeriCares.  There, she was able to obtain her asthma prescriptions for free. "I was so thankful," Lawson said.

To help low income and uninsured patients like Janey breathe easier and avoid unnecessary trips to the hospital, AmeriCares is providing a record quantity of respiratory medicines to hundreds of clinics and community health centers across the United States in 2013.  More than $2.4 million in prescription medicines -- enough to fill about 25,000 prescriptions were donated by companies including Sunovion Pharmaceuticals Inc. and AstraZeneca. The donations came from a special appeal for medicines for National Asthma and Allergy Awareness Month – but will help patients suffering from respiratory conditions all year long.

Teresa Ditmer, executive director of Compassionate Care, said her Sidney, Ohio clinic relies on inhalers and other rescue medications donated by AmeriCares to help uninsured patients who are referred there after suffering an asthma attack. The donated products ensure that there are enough medicines on hand for patients to begin treatment right away.  

“It’s hard to get respiratory meds donated, especially in a timely manner," Ditmer explained. "When a person has asthma they can't wait for an inhaler. The donations improve our ability to treat patients with chronic diseases.”

The medicines are available to hundreds of free clinics and community health centers serving low-income and uninsured patients through AmeriCares U.S. Medical Assistance Program. Safety net partners select the products they want from an online ordering system and AmeriCares delivers them free of charge.

“These are some of the most frequently prescribed respiratory medicines, and some of the most difficult for low-income patients to obtain,” said Leslie McGuire, AmeriCares director of U.S. programs. “Uninsured and underinsured patients can receive treatment in safety net clinics and health centers, but without donated medicines many would leave with scripts in hand they can’t afford to fill.”