New Delhi: Health data exchange under the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) is strictly permitted only with patient consent, Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare, Prataprao Jadhav, informed the Rajya Sabha in a written reply on Tuesday.
He emphasized that digital health applications must first undergo validation in a sandbox environment before integration with ABDM. These applications are also subjected to security audits like the Web Application Security Audit (WASA) to ensure the protection of sensitive patient data. This process ensures adherence to the Health Data Management Policy (HDM Policy), 2020.
To enable seamless health data interoperability among healthcare providers, the Health Information Exchange and Consent Manager (HIECM) gateway has been developed. It enforces common data standards for consistent and secure record sharing. Additionally, the Unified Health Interface (UHI), built under ABDM, supports standard-based protocols for delivering interoperable health services.
Highlighting the government’s efforts to standardize digital health practices, the minister noted that Electronic Health Record (EHR) standards were released in December 2016, following earlier versions notified in 2013. To further push nationwide EHR adoption, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has established a Centre of Excellence, the National Resource Centre for EHR Standards (NRCeS).
To expand the reach of ABDM, especially in digitally underserved regions, the ABHA portal (abha.abdm.gov.in) and the government’s personal health record (PHR) application—ABHA app—have been made user-friendly and available in multiple languages. The mission also offers assisted and offline ABHA creation options in areas with poor internet access or limited hardware infrastructure.