Medical Information Big Data - The Case of Japan (医療ビッグデータ)

(医療ビッグデータと個人情報に関するブログ記事、LinkedInから再掲)

It has been reported that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced in the “Discussion on Future Investment between the Government and Private Sector” that in order to utilize big data, certain entities must be permitted to collect anonymous patient data held by medical entities. Medical prescriptions, medical examination scores, post-operative status, and other information will be analyzed by the age or location of the anonymized patients. According to the basic rule under the current Act on the Protection of Personal Information (the “APPI”), medical data cannot be collected without patient consent. Accordingly, the Government is going to amend the APPI so that a certified organization (most likely a university or entity of doctors’ association), which intends to use the data for medical purposes, will be able to collect the data without patient consent. It has also been reported that each individual will be assigned a medical number. 

 (Please see http://www.nikkei.com/article/DGKKASFS12H3P_S6A410C1EA2000/ and http://www.kantei.go.jp/jp/97_abe/actions/201604/12kanmintaiwa.html) 

 In ordinary data privacy discussion, one of the main issues is an individual’s control over his or her personal information, especially to protect from any third party benefiting from that information commercially—to control how his or her information is used and to whom the information is provided. However, although medical information big data is one of the most sensitive types of information, it may also help an individual improve his or her health—especially where the individual has been identified and he or she can receive specific feedback. Therefore, it is reasonable for personal medical information to be discussed separately from other personal information; furthermore, a different identification number will be used from that which is used for administrative or tax purposes. Nevertheless, it is uncertain whether this Japanese system will operate internationally in the future. This is because the EU and the U.S. might not use such a system to collect data without patient consent. Consequently, further discussion might be necessary to find a better solution. 

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