Approximately 40–60% of people with severe asthma receive long-term oral corticosteroids (OCS) treatment, which can result in adverse outcomes and increase healthcare costs long-term.

Frequent use of OCS for uncontrolled asthma should trigger an alert to identify when a referral to a specialist is needed.

Treatment focus needs to shift from short-term exacerbation management to better long-term control of the underlying disease.

A global reduction in the reliance on OCS can be achieved by establishing a threshold of 500 mg/year and implementing campaigns to raise awareness of the appropriate use of OCS.