IDIKA: Extension of the EU Health Services "Roaming" System.
HDIKA (e-Government Center for Social Security S.A.) announces that on September 2, 2024, the operation of the cross-border electronic prescription exchange hub was expanded with the inclusion of Lithuania and the Czech Republic.
With the addition of these two new countries, a Greek insured citizen visiting Lithuania or the Czech Republic will be able to visit any pharmacy in these countries and dispense an electronic prescription issued in Greece, by providing only their AMKA (Social Security Number) and their ID card or passport.
The Greek cross-border hub, which is part of the European network MyHealth@EU, became operational in November 2023 with the interconnection with Poland for the dispensing of medical prescriptions, and with Spain, initially for the exchange of Patient Summaries between Greece and Spain, and subsequently for the dispensing of medical prescriptions.
In February 2024, the hub was interconnected with Estonia both for the dispensing of medical prescriptions and the exchange of Patient Summaries.
IDIKA executives, during a trip to Estonia in August 2024 under the EU TWINNING program aimed at exchanging expertise in e-health matters among EU member states, successfully dispensed medical prescriptions in an Estonian pharmacy that had been issued in Greece via the National Electronic Prescription System. It is noted that through the myHealth app, insured individuals can view all their prescriptions dispensed in countries that interoperate with the Greek National Contact Point for eHealth (NCPeH) for prescription dispensing.
"We are continuing the development of the Ministry of Health's cross-border hub, ensuring that insured individuals have access to essential healthcare services when abroad. We continue with the same commitment so that in the near future, Greece's interconnections with France, Croatia, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Portugal, Latvia, and Finland will be added," stated the CEO of IDIKA, Niki Tsouma.
It is noted that with the activation of the European Health Data Space (EHDS), the interoperability of cross-border hubs becomes mandatory for all member states, enabling the "roaming" of healthcare services across the European Union.
Citizens will be able to easily identify cross-border electronic healthcare services by the "MyHealth@EU" service brand.
