Scottish medicines fund for rare diseases launched

A new medicines fund is to be launched in Scotland that will make it easier for patients suffering from rare conditions to afford treatment.

The Scottish government is setting aside 21 million pounds to cover the cost of orphan drugs, which are designated as medicines for illnesses that affect fewer than one in 2,000 people and are typically relatively expensive.

Medicines not recommended for routine use by the Scottish Medicines Consortium will be covered by the fund, which has been put in place following advice in a review from Professor Charles Swainson.

The new scheme will be introduced in March 2013 and will run through to April 2014, with requests to be decided on a case-by-case basis depending on individual circumstances.

Health secretary Alex Neil said: "It is only right that Scottish patients with rare conditions have access to innovative medicines which are clinically justified and that they are not disadvantaged due to the very high cost of these treatments."

According to Rare Disease UK, around one in 17 people will be affected by some form of rare condition in their lifetime, or approximately 3.5 million people in the UK.