Access to electronic health records continues to increase across Europe

In 2025, Member States made further progress towards achieving the eHealth target of “100% of EU citizens having access to their electronic health records by 2030”. The composite eHealth score for the EU-27 reached an average of 87%, an increase of 4 percentage points compared with 2024. All Member States have an online access service; four Member States operate regional services (Ireland, Italy, Spain and Sweden).

Overall, 18 Member States, Iceland and Norway increased their maturity score compared with 2024, reflecting improvements such as wider availability of data types and a greater number of healthcare providers being connected and sharing data. Nine Member States maintained the same maturity level, including Belgium and Estonia, which reached a 100% composite maturity score in 2024.

Some areas are advancing, while others require further effort

Substantial progress has been made in improving the availability of electronic health record data. Data about identification (100%), personal information (98%), eDispenstion (91%) and ePrescription (89%) are the most widely available (see Figure 1). However, medical images (35%) and medical devices and implants (59%) remain less available, due to technical limitations and fragmented systems.

Figure 1 - Average EU maturity score per data type

In addition, more EU citizens gained secure access to their electronic health records through interoperable electronic identification means (eID): 22 Member States (81%) report using an authentication method based on an EUDI-complaint eID, an increase of one country compared with 2024. Furthermore, 23 Member States (85%) report that 80–100% of the national population is technically able to access their EHRs through the service provided.

In terms of health data supply by healthcare providers, public providers (85%) are better connected than private providers (66%). Although the number of connected private healthcare providers has increased, their relative absence remains a key reason why this sub-indicator’s maturity score is considerably lower than the EU-27 composite eHealth average (78% vs 87%). Overall, geriatric nursing homes, rehabilitation centres and mental health facilities – both public and private – are less connected to supply data than other types of healthcare providers (see Figure 2).

Figure 2 - Average EU maturity by type of healthcare provider (grouped by sector)

Access opportunities for legal guardians and authorised persons also continued to improve: one additional Member State introduced access for legal guardians, and three additional Member States introduced access for authorised persons. In total, 22 Member States (81%) facilitate access for legal guardians to their wards’ health data, both in terms of legal provisions and technical functionality. By contrast, only 18 Member States (67%) provide comparable functionality with a legal basis for citizens to authorise other persons to access their health data and perform actions on their behalf. Access for authorised persons remains the least mature area, despite incremental progress in several Member States.

Compliance with web accessibility guidelines (as required by the Web Accessibility Directive) increased by seven points in 2025, with 22 Member States (81%) aligning their access services with the guidelines.

Looking ahead, the adoption of the European Health Data Space (EHDS) Regulation and the application of its provisions starting from March 2027 will reinforce efforts to achieve the eHealth target. It is expected to address some of the challenges constraining progress in Member States by clarifying rights and obligations for primary use and by accelerating interoperability, security and standardisation across EHR systems and data suppliers.

Background information

The eHealth indicator study collects data through an online survey completed annually by national competent authorities in each participating country. The 2026 edition is the fourth data collection using this methodology and presents the data collected for 2025.

The eHealth indicator comprises 12 sub-indicators that capture the concept of citizens’ technical access to their EHRs. These cover the types of health data available, supplier coverage, modes of access, and access requirements.

Each sub-indicator contributes equally to the composite eHealth score. Survey responses are converted into maturity scores according to a pre-defined scoring scheme. Response options are assigned scores between 0% and 100% to create a maturity scale for each sub-indicator.
The eHealth target is part of the Digital Decade Policy Programme 2030 and a key priority for Europe’s digital transformation.

Deliverables

Read more about the 2026 State of the Digital Decade package.