The Polish Senate has unanimously passed legislation to modernize the national healthcare system, introducing e-patient cards, remote consultation frameworks, and advanced AI-driven diagnostic tools under the National Recovery Plan.
Digital Health and National Recovery
During a Senate Health Committee meeting, Deputy Minister of Health Tomasz Maciejewski stated that the act is a cornerstone of the healthcare system’s modernization. He emphasized that the regulatory changes are intrinsically linked to investments under the National Recovery Plan, specifically targeting the digital transformation of medical care.
Łukasz Sosnowski, Director of the e-Health Department at the Ministry of Health, noted that Poland has established a solid digital foundation. He explained that this legislation standardizes medical data processing and provides a stable legal framework for increasingly advanced services.
Key Innovations in Care
The proposed changes include the introduction of the e-patient card, a new form of electronic medical documentation. Furthermore, the act mandates the expansion of the e-health infrastructure to include the e-Konsylium (e-Consultation) system and a dedicated Home Medical Care system.
The legislation also establishes a platform for intelligent services, granting medical entities free access to AI-driven tools. These systems will assist in diagnostic processes, particularly in medical imaging, such as detecting thoracic pathologies in CT scans or identifying breast cancer lesions.
Security and Legislative Progress
During the parliamentary process, amendments regarding patient data security were adopted. Data transferred to the e-Health Data Warehouse must now be pseudonymized, ensuring that information cannot be linked to a specific individual without additional data.
The bill passed the Senate on Thursday with a unanimous vote of 83 in favor, with no votes against and no abstentions.