Electronic healthcare appointments, patient records to begin soon in Czechia

The Czech Health Ministry has announced that electronic forms for requesting and booking appointments for examinations, as well as accessing patient records, will be operational in Czech medical facilities beginning in 2026. This marks a significant step towards streamlining healthcare information and making it more easily accessible for patients.

People will be able to access and utilize a range of health services via the EZ Card (EZ Karta) mobile application. According to Health Minister Vlastimil Válek, this effort has been in the works for three years and is being funded through the National Recovery Plan with European money. The goal is to have all electronic healthcare systems up and running by 2026.

Petr Foltýn, director of the National Center for Electronic Healthcare, explained that the mobile application EZ Card – created by transforming the Tečka application – will also see new added in the future. He added that the application currently has around 2 million users.

The new EZ Card features will include the ability to check if a patient is restricted from holding a weapon or driving a car for medical reasons, as well as the creation of an emergent record for medical emergency services.

The app, which currently displays vaccinations received since 2023, will also include data on covered vaccinations from as far back as 2010 by the end of this year. Válek states that this will be a gradual process, with the first set of data being added in mid-September and the rest by the end of the year.

The initial plan, outlined in a draft amendment to the Act on Electronic Health Care, was for e-requests and patient records to be operational by 2025. However, after careful consideration and preparation, the state decided that an extra year will be needed to ensure the smooth functioning of these systems.

In addition, the Očkoreport website, which was used for ordering Covid-19 vaccinations, will now offer the option to schedule appointments for vaccinations against 20 other diseases. These vaccinations will be available at various locations, including vaccination centers, hospitals, and over 80 general practitioners across all regions.

The main change, however, will be seen in the e-prescription system, where the responsibility for recording co-payments for prescription drugs will shift from health insurance companies to the State Institute for Drug Control starting in January 2025. This will allow pharmacists to see a patient's limit for co-payments and their usage in the eRecept application.

According to the government, a new amendment to the law on the electronicization of healthcare will bring the Czech Republic in line with the European Health Data space, allowing for the safe sharing of health data among European countries.