EHDS Consensus Statement

EPF joins the stakeholders’ consensus response to the proposed European Health Data Space (EHDS)

EPF joins a group of 35 stakeholders in welcoming the European Commission’s proposal on the European Health Data Space (EHDS). The stakeholders, including medical professional and research organisations, patient representatives, industry associations, and data collaborations, strongly support the aims of the EHDS as proposed by the European Commission.

The consensus response statement formulates recommendations to consider when developing the more specific implementation plans to put the regulation into practice across the member states:

1. A broad range of stakeholders must be strongly involved from the outset of the process to guarantee the success of the EHDS.
2. The EHDS must align with all relevant horizontal and sectoral European laws.
3. There must be harmonised interpretation and implementation of the regulation across the EU.
4. Approvals for secondary use of health data must be consistent and harmonised across Europe.
5. The scope of EHR systems must be defined clearly within the regulation.
6. The successful implementation of the EHDS must be adequately resourced.
7. Existing health data infrastructures must be leveraged to allow continuity and build on existing expertise.

Read the full statement here.