Minister restores drug funding for B.C. girl with rare disease

B-C Health Minister Josie Osborne says she's reinstated funding for drug coverage for a ten-year-old Langford girl who suffers from a rare neurodegenerative disease.

Osborne says she spoke to Charleigh Pollock's family on Thursday evening and told them that the funding will be available for as long as her doctor and the family deem appropriate.

The minister says a letter from experts on Batten disease confirmed that there's ``significant disagreement'' about the drug Brineura, which costs around $1 million a year.

Pollock is the only person in B-C with the disease, and one of around 20 in Canada.