Having drilled the first bolts of its ambitious EU health agenda, the European Commission is now called to the challenging task of creating a trustworthy, patient-centred European health data space.
Expectations are high for this cornerstone of health digitalisation that will seek to make good use of healthcare data for research and innovation, but also for policymaking and regulatory purposes.
In 2021, the Commission is planning a legislative initiative that will be part of the European Health Union, which is intended to reshape the way health is dealt with in the EU.
Investments in the European health data space will be supported by the newly established EU4Health programme, as well as common data spaces and digital health-related innovation under the Horizon Europe and the Digital Europe programmes.