Japan to compensate patients in hepatitis scandal

TOKYO, Jan 11 (Reuters) - Japan passed a law on Friday to compensate patients who contracted hepatitis C through tainted blood products, as Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda apologised again for the government's role in the scandal.

The ruling coalition proposed the compensation plan after Fukuda's delay in helping the victims eroded his public support ratings, adding to voter anger over mishandled pension records and a bribery case involving a former defence official.

At least 10,000 people are estimated to have contracted Hepatitis C through tainted products from around 1970 to the early 1990s. A group of patients sued the government and drug makers including Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma Corp (4508.T).

"Finally, our five-year battle has been rewarded," said Michiko Yamaguchi, one of the patients, after the new law was passed in an unanimous vote in parliament's upper house.

The group had been unhappy with a previous government aid proposal that sought to compensate only some victims under different conditions.

A public outcry forced Fukuda to order his ruling coalition to draft a new bill, under which an estimated 1,000 patients will be compensated under equal conditions.

The compensation will be funded by the government and drug companies.

Fukuda apologised to the patients and their families.

"The government must honestly admit to its responsibility for the enormous suffering brought about to the victims of the infection and for its inability to prevent it from spreading," he said in a statement.

In October, patients were outraged after Health Ministry officials admitted to having data that would have helped identify or warn hundreds of patients before their illnesses worsened.

Most cases have been linked to fibrinogen, a coagulant used to stop haemorrhaging during surgery or childbirth and sold in Japan even after it was withdrawn in the United States in 1977.

Hepatitis C can develop into chronic liver infection and cirrhosis. About 1 percent to 5 percent of people with the disease eventually die from long-term infection, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says.

Fukuda's decision to draft the bill in December came a week after public opinion polls found ratings for his cabinet had plunged to just over 30 percent, a level analysts say could threaten his ability to stay in power. (Reporting by Chisa Fujioka; editing by Sophie Hardach)