Present status of health databases and related legislations in Japan

Abstract

The introduction of IT systems into medical workplaces in Japan was progressive, but the utilization of data has been delayed compared with other countries. However, implementation of the national government's new IT reform strategies of 2006 and the development of databases are progressing rapidly. The Act on the Protection of Personal Information of 2005 may have played a role in accelerating the development of health databases in terms of handling health data and protecting patients' privacy, but the advancement of IT has been fast and demand for using so-called big data is also increasing. Of course, evidence-based medicine and policy decisions are important, and using health data for the public benefit should be promoted; however, concerns about privacy infringement are also on the rise. Against this background, the Act on the Protection of Personal Information was revised in 2016, with the revised law to be enacted at the end of May 2017. Although privacy protection was strengthened, restrictions on secondary use of data were tightened, and the "Act for Authorized Providers of De-identified Health Data" was enacted to promote the use of health data for the public benefit. In this lecture, I describe the current situation regarding health data utilization in Japan and discuss issues for the future.