The leader in medical appointment scheduling offers a new space aimed at bringing together patient health data. Direct competition to “My health space”, Health Insurance, according to certain players in the sector.
- Doctolib, the platform for making medical appointments, announced at the end of November the upcoming creation of a personal health space allowing all of a patient’s data to be collected.
- The news sparked heated controversy because, according to its detractors, the functionality would directly compete with Health Insurance’s “My Health Space”, relaunched by the State in 2022.
- The risk, for many doctors, is that of duplication, that is to say that we end up prioritizing the Doctolib application over the tool created by the State. Health Insurance says it is waiting for a “clarification” from Doctolib.
The controversy bogs down. Doctolib, the platform for making medical appointments, announced at the end of November the upcoming creation of a personal health space allowing all of a patient’s data to be collected. News which sparked heated controversy because, according to its detractors, the functionality would directly compete with Health Insurance’s “My Health Space”, relaunched by the State in 2022.
The risk of “privatization” of the digital health record?
Doctolib’s stated objective is to encourage patients to submit their medical results, their prescriptions, their history, their treatments, their allergies, their vaccination records, etc. on its new application. This should make it easier for caregivers to work. , customers of the platform to the 50 million registered in France, but also to send personalized prevention messages.
In the wake of the announcement, the Digital Health Delegation (DNS), attached to the Ministry of Health and responsible for regulating the uses of digital health actors, took up a forum to criticize the risk of “privatization” of the digital health record. “It is not a question of privatizing the ‘digital health record’ or creating another digital safe”, defended the co-founder of Doctolib, Stanislas Niox-Château, in the columns of Le Monde. “Our software is the first contributor to the public platform ‘My health space’.”
“Instead of promoting solutions that work, they are putting obstacles in our way. It’s so stupid!”exclaims another Doctolib executive at the microphone of France Inter. “We discourage a private actor who is a hit and who, what’s more, wants to work hand in hand with the State.”
Health Insurance is worried
If the DNS today pleads “communication errors” Around this platform, on the Health Insurance side, we are still worried about this offer from Doctolib. “It seems very close to what ‘My health space’ offers, explains Thomas Fatôme, its general director, to Le Monde. The reference place for hosting health data is the public service, with ‘My health space’, it is a choice of the legislator, and there is a real ambiguity in proposing another.”
The risk, for many doctors, is that of duplication, that is to say that we end up prioritizing the Doctolib application over the tool created by the State, with all the guarantees of confidentiality that this implies. . The head of Health Insurance says he is waiting for a “clarification” from Doctolib, because “there must be no competition”.
