EPHA position on General Data Protection Regulation

The European Commission (EC) is currently reviewing its existing legal framework on data protection to ensure that the rules are fit for dealing with increasingly complex and sophisticated developments in technology and data usage. The ambitious legislative proposal for a Regulation on General Data Protection [1] proposes harmonisation rules for many data areas – including in the area of health – with implications for individuals, companies and public authorities.

EPHA supports the aims and objectives of the Commission’s draft proposal and acknowledges the weaknesses of the existing legal structure. The proposal attempts to balance the individual’s fundamental right to data protection with need for free flowing information in a single European market – from a public health perspective the primary concern, as highlighted by the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC), is that this balance is currently uneven, favouring the latter over the former [2].

EPHA position on EU Data Protection Reform