eHealth in Greece
Key figures
10.7M
people
7.8% of the GDP
was spent on health care in 2019
+2M
of e-prescriptions and e-diagnostics per month in 2021
A unified national health insurance fund responsible for primary and ambulatory health care facilities
The Greek health system is centralised and supervised by the state. The National Organisation for Health Care Service (EOPYY) is the national health insurance fund and the sole purchaser of public health services. It is financed by social contributions and taxes. Its budget covers 60% of Greek health expenditure. The rest is financed directly by patients.
Meeting the ambassadors
Nikolas Belias, Conseiller Génral aux Affaires de l'Economie et Commercial, à Paris
THE EOPYY :
- sets out the prerequisites for entering into contracts with health care providers
- negotiates compensation, contract terms, and prices for pharmaceutical products and medical devices
- reimburses primary care, diagnostics, and outpatient and inpatient specialty care
Rural health centers and their medical offices, as well as urban health centers, are accessible free of charge.
Organizations accountable for eHealth
The Ministry of Health ensures the promotion of the health for the population, through the planning and implementation of Public Health policies.
The GRNET, led by the Ministry of Digital Governance, collaborates with the relevant ministries fot digital infrastructure and its development. It provides hospitals and healthcare personnel with medical technology and software.
Ministry of Developments and Investments is implementing strategies for the development of the industry and regularly offers funding to entrepreneurs. Its General Secretariat for Research and Innovation lists and supervises Greek research centers and technology agencies.
How do you access the Greek market?
1. The Elevate Greece platform, a one-stop shop for navigating the innovation ecosystem
Elevate Greece is a platform developed by the General Secretariat for Research and Innovation for start-ups. It also offers a database listing all the start-ups present in Greece.
It is necessary to be registered in this database in order to have access to the financing that the Ministry of Development and Investments makes available to start-ups. EU co-funding opportunities can be found at the Equifund website.
2. Health clusters
Hellenic Digital Health Cluster - HDHC is the cluster dedicated to eHealth in Greece. It is partnered with Hellas Forth, one of the largest national research centers in Greece. HDHC is one of the bodies supervised by the General Secretariat for Research and Innovation and is part of the Enterprise Europe Network (EEN)
3. Innovation and research centers to support entrepreneurs
The National Documentation Center (EKT) is an innovation and research center that offers support to Greek and international Researchers and Innovating organisations and SMEs including start-ups within the Greek ecosystem.EKT is the Horizon Europe National Contact Point for Cluster 1 (Health), Cluster 4 (Digital, Industry, Space) and the "Cancer Mission". It is the Greek EIT Health Hub, whose areas of expertise include eHealth Medtech and Biotech mainly focusing on Startups and Students.
Other structures allow the development of health solutions such as the Technology Transfer Unit at the Science and Technology Park of Crete (STEP-C). It is one of the largest research organizations offering an incubator for start-ups.
4. Health authorities: Ensuring the safety of citizens
The National Evaluation Center of Quality and Technology in Health (EKAPTY) is the organization in charge of certifying and notifying new health technologies, under the supervision of the Ministry of Health. The organization grants quality certificates that declare the conformity of products, services, processes and quality systems with the requirements of national, European, and international standards and legislation.
5. The National Organization for Healthcare Services (EOPYY), the sole buyer of healthcare solutions
EOPYY is the national organization for health care services that makes decisions about the provision of health care solutions to healthcare workers and reimbursement for the public.
Government authorities and platforms
Ensure efficient operation and cooperation within the healthcare system
Hubs and innovation clusters
They bring together and facilitate the incubation of new technologies
Training courses
Universities and their groups that offer training and support for digital health innovations