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Starting this week, citizens of Estonia and Greece can use cross-border e-prescription and Patient Summary services, marking a significant step in the digitalisation of healthcare services and supporting the mobility of citizens across Europe.
Estonians can now purchase medications in Greece based on an Estonian e-prescription and vice versa; Greek citizens can buy medications in Estonia with a Greek e-prescription. Additionally, healthcare professionals in both countries can access each other’s health data, ensuring better continuity and quality of care across borders.
“This innovation means much more than just convenience. It represents a sense of security and assurance that our health is protected while travelling,” said Aurelia Mihk, the manager of cross-border data exchange services at the Health and Welfare Information Systems Centre (TEHIK). “For example, if an Estonian family is vacationing in Greece and a family member unexpectedly needs medical care, local healthcare professionals can immediately access their health data in their native language or purchase the necessary medication based on an Estonian ePrescription. This makes treatment faster and more effective while also reducing stress and worry.”
“I can imagine how important this service is for the elderly, for instance, who spend the winter months in warmer countries,” Mihk added. “Previously, their continuous medical monitoring could be challenging, but now their health data and e-prescriptions are accessible across borders, ensuring continuous and quality care.”
For Estonian citizens, the process in Greece is as simple as at home: going to a pharmacy with an ID card or passport allows the pharmacist to access e-prescriptions based on the personal identification code. For Greeks, the national social security number (AMKA) is used for identification, which must be presented to the pharmacist along with an identity document.
“The steps taken today not only improve the quality and availability of healthcare services but also create closer ties between European countries,” concluded the service manager. “This proves how technology can make our daily lives better, safer, and more convenient.”
Prescription medications to be available from southern neighbours
This initiative is part of a broader European Union cross-border data exchange project, which already includes several member states: Spain, Croatia, Poland, Portugal, Finland, the Czech Republic, and now Greece. More countries, including Latvia, are expected to join soon, further expanding the opportunities for Estonian citizens to use healthcare services across Europe.
In addition to cross-border digital prescription data exchange, Estonian patients’ health data is now accessible to healthcare workers in Luxembourg, the Netherlands, France, Portugal, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Spain, Malta, and Greece.
More detailed information about all participating countries and services can be found on the TEHIK website: https://www.tehik.ee/en/cross-border-data-exchange
