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People in Wales who cannot eat gluten will soon be able to use prepaid cards to purchase specialised food, the Welsh government announced today.
The cards, which will be rolled out in a UK-first this autumn after a trial, will be topped up every three months and the amount for each patient will vary.
The scheme aims to give people with conditions such as coeliac disease access to a bigger range of gluten-free food, and allow them to avoid relying on pharmacy prescriptions.
Cherylee Barker, 54, who was diagnosed with coeliac disease in 2007 and took part in the trial, said she got £14 a month on her card as part of the scheme, which she told the BBC only “scratches the surface of the cost”.
Gluten-free products are typically more expensive and can add up to 35% to food bills
Coeliac disease is a serious autoimmune illness in which the body’s immune system attacks its tissue when gluten is consumed. It affects one in 100 people.
The Welsh cabinet secretary for health and social care, Jeremy Miles, said: “For people living with coeliac disease, following a strict gluten-free diet is not a lifestyle choice but a medical necessity.”
Miles said they want to demedicalise Wales’ gluten-free food supply and give people more options.
He said it will also help cut the current administrative burdens on GPs and pharmacies, and promote NHS resources.
Its users will have to pay for gluten-containing food separately to ensure it is being used legitimately.
Tristan Humphreys from, Coeliac UK, said: “For those living with coeliac disease, basic gluten-free products are on average more than double their gluten-containing counterparts.
“This scheme offers an empowering, practical alternative for patients, and we know the coeliac community in Wales will be encouraged by this flexible new support option.”