Digital Europe publishes policy paper on EHDS implementation and IP protection
Digital Europe, together with the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations, the European Confederation of Pharmaceutical Entrepreneurs, the European Coordination Committee of the Radiological, Electromedical and Healthcare IT Industry, and MedTech Europe, have published a joint policy paper setting out recommendations on the implementation of the European Health Data Space to protect intellectual property, trade secrets and commercially confidential information while enabling the secondary use of health data for research, innovation and public health. The paper states that although the EHDS offers significant opportunities for data-driven innovation and improved patient outcomes, its success depends on a governance framework that balances data accessibility with the protection of proprietary information that underpins investment and innovation. It highlights that the EHDS extends data-sharing obligations to privately held and pre-commercial datasets and warns that, in the absence of implementing acts under Article 52, divergent national approaches risk fragmentation and a loss of trust among data holders.