The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approves not only which drugs can go to market but also whether they require a prescription from a doctor. The agency gets this power from the Durham-Humphrey Amendment of 1951. Meant to protect patients, the law has turned into a license to make life difficult. Here are five low-risk drugs that the FDA could make available over the counter today.

Albuterol: Research shows that albuterol is vastly superior at relieving asthma symptoms compared to other inhalers, which is why it’s offered over the counter in Singapore, Australia, Slovenia, and South Africa. It’s also available in the United Kingdom under the name Salbutamol. There is no logical safety-related reason why albuterol sits behind the counter while its competitors, the epinephrine drugs Primatene Mist and Asthmanefrin, are available without a prescription…