The Ministry of Health of Peru announced on May 13 the official enactment of Supreme Decree No. 006-2026-SA, which adds a key transitional provision to the regulations governing Law No. 29698 and reaffirms state support for patients with rare or orphan diseases.
This measure is designed to provide legal and healthcare security by establishing mechanisms that prevent administrative or regulatory changes from disrupting access to biotechnological medicines and life-support treatments.
“For a person with a rare or orphan disease, one day without medication can mean irreversible setbacks. This decree is a protective shield that ensures the health system adapts to the patient, not the other way around,” said Dr. Percy Herrera Añazco, executive director of the Directorate for Non-Communicable, Rare and Orphan Diseases (DENOT) at the Ministry of Health.
The new transitional provision aims to improve access by streamlining state purchasing processes under Law No. 29698’s principle of ‘preferential attention.’ It also seeks to maintain continuity in therapy regimens for already diagnosed patients as new protocols are implemented in 2025, while reducing disparities in care for families who rely on public health services due to high treatment costs.
Herrera Añazco said this decree builds upon previous efforts such as Supreme Decree No. 002-2025-SA aimed at modernizing management of rare diseases in Peru. “National public health is strengthened by recognizing that although these diseases affect relatively few individuals separately, together they present a significant public health challenge requiring an efficient and humane response,” he said.
The Ministry reaffirmed its commitment to building a more inclusive healthcare system so that complex diagnoses do not become barriers to fundamental rights.
