The EU provides financial support to help Member States enhance their digital health systems. Several EU funding programs are available, offering resources for the development and implementation of digital health initiatives: EU4Health, Digital Europe Programme:, Connecting Europe Facility, Horizon Europe, Technical Support Instrument, Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF), Structural Reform Support Programme, European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), and Just Transition Fund.
Overview of funding programmes
- was adopted to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic – which highlighted the fragility of national health systems – and to reinforce crisis preparedness in the EU
- will help meet the long-term health challenges by building stronger, more resilient and more accessible health systems
- is an unparalleled EU financial support in the health area with a €4.4 billion budget for 2021-2027 MFF
- sends a clear message that public health is a priority for the EU and is one of the main instruments to pave the way to a European Health Union.
- provides funding for projects in supercomputing, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, advanced digital skills and wide use of digital technologies across the economy and society
- is designed to bridge the gap between digital technology research and market deployment
- will benefit Europe's citizens and businesses, especially SMEs
- supports the European Union’s twin objectives of a green transition and digital transformation while strengthening the Union’s resilience and digital sovereignty.
- is designed to support infrastructure projects in transport, energy, and digital sectors
- includes CEF Digital strand, which aims to leverage public and private investments in digital connectivity infrastructures of common European interest.
Horizon Europe:
- is a key funding programme for research and innovation
- includes Cluster 1: Health, which aims at:
- improving and protecting the health and well-being of citizens by developing innovative solutions
- developing health technologies, mitigating health risks, protecting populations and promoting good health and well-being in general and at work
- making public health systems more cost-effective, equitable and sustainable
Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF):
- is a temporary instrument that is the centrepiece of NextGenerationEU - the EU’s plan to emerge stronger and more resilient from the COVID-19 crisis
- aims to make economies and societies more sustainable, resilient and prepared for the green and digital transitions, in line with the EU’s priorities
- addresses the challenges identified in country-specific recommendations under the European Semester framework of economic and social policy coordination.
European regional development fund (ERDF):
- is designed to strengthen the economic, social, and territorial cohesion in the EU
- aims to correct imbalances between regions enabling investments in a smarter, greener, more connected and more social Europe that is closer to its citizens
- supports MS efforts to reach equal access to healthcare
EU support for the implementation of European Health Data Space Regulation
Member States and the European Commission will support the EHDS implementation under different EU funds and instruments:
- Member States have budgeted €14 billion for investments in digital health under the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF).
- The European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Invest EU offer further investment opportunities.
- The Commission will provide over €810 million: €280 million under the EU4Health Programme and the rest via the Digital Europe Programme, Connecting Europe Facility and Horizon Europe.
Overall, the EHDS is expected to save the EU around €11 billion over ten years:
- €5.5 billion thanks to better access to and exchange of health data in healthcare
- €5.4 billion thanks to better use of health data for research, innovation and policy making
