Plans in place in case of medicine supply shortages caused by no-deal Brexit, says Constitution Secretary Michael Russell
An alert system has been set up inca sea no-deal B rex it causes shortages in medicine supply, Constitution Secretary Michael Russell has said.
Talks with health boards are ongoing to make sure they are prepared for any disruption, he added.
Mr Russell also said it was "inconceivable" that the SNP would vote for any Bexit deal in the House of Commons, despite saying the UK Government should come to an arrangement with the EU for the future beyond the transition period.
Speaking on the BBC'S Good Morning Scotland, the Constitution Secretary said the Scottish Government was discussing its no-deal planning for a third time.
He said: "We have put in place something called medicine supply alert notices which will flag up if there are any shortages coming down the track, and we'll be able to address those.
"We' re working with the health boards and others on resilience and indeed there is another event this week."
Mr Russell said he would outline further issues of Brexit preparedness in a statement to Holyrood on Tuesday.
The UK Government was only looking for a "low deal" outcome from the ongoing talks, he said, which would lead to disruption on 1 January.
He continued: "Having said that, and I am certainly no fan of Brexit at all, it is better to have some sort of arrangement than no sort of arrangement.
"Because with no sort of arrangement it is impossible to say what will happen next."
Saying the SNP would not vote for a deal if the Prime Minister brought it to the House of Commons, Mr Russell added: "It would be extraordinary if we were voting to give away all the rights that we have and all the things we have enjoyed for almost 50 years. That would be inconceivable."
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon also mentioned the steps the Scottish Government is taking during the Scottish Government's coronavirus briefing on Monday.
A national stockpile of about 60 critical care medicines had been established, she said, as well as supplies for coronavirus treatment.
The First Minister said: "NHS National Services Scotland is working to ensure adequate supplies of stocks of medical devices and clinical consumables.