Medical experts and patients are welcoming funding of a drug for those with an incurable and debilitating form of motor neurone disease.
The drug-buying agency Pharmac says the new medicine will extend the lives of those with the condition.
Pharmac says from Tuesday it will fund riluzole for people with the main form of motor neurone disease: Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, or ALS.
ALS is a progressive, ultimately fatal degenerative neurological condition where patients lose control of their movements, including the ability to swallow and breathe.
Riluzole is expected to extend patients' lives by an average of three or four months.
It's estimated it will be used by about 100 patients over the next three years, at a total cost of $0.5 million a year.
The director of the Auckland-based Centre of Brain Research, Richard Faull, says it's the right step for patients with a terrible disease.
