Europe's Digital Health Divide: Leaders and Laggards in EHR Access

Digital health services are rapidly expanding across Europe, with teleconsultations seeing significant growth since the pandemic. Access to electronic health records (EHR) and digital health literacy are key to modernizing healthcare systems, promising faster, safer, and more coordinated patient treatment.

The European Union aims for 100 percent of citizens to access their EHR by 2030. However, current access levels reveal a stark divide.

According to a recent European Commission report, the composite eHealth score for EHR access reached 83 percent in 2024, up from 79 percent in 2023. This score measures full maturity in citizen access to electronic health data.

Belgium and Estonia lead the pack with a perfect 100 percent score. Other top performers include Denmark (98%), Lithuania (95%), Malta (94%), Poland (92%), and Norway (91%). These nations offer high population access to various health data categories from most providers.

Ireland, however, lags significantly with a score of just 25 percent. As of 2024, Ireland was the only EU country without a national online portal for electronic health data access. A national EHR procurement is now underway, aiming to modernize the system by February 2026.

Beyond access, digital health literacy-the ability to find, understand, and use health information online-also requires improvement across many European countries. The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) reports that confidence in digital health tools remains low, particularly among older individuals and those with lower educational attainment.

Data from 17 OECD countries shows digital health literacy scores for users aged 45 and over with lower education at 18 percent, compared to 26 percent for those with higher education. Czechia leads in digital health literacy among the highly educated at 53 percent, followed by Wales (46%) and France (43%).

Experts emphasize that robust EHR systems are crucial for expanding digital health services, enabling smoother data exchange and better teleconsultation capabilities.