AWS to Create Digital Health IDs & Longitudinal Health Records for Indian Citizens 

AWS partners with Indian health platforms to establish digital health IDs and longitudinal health records, aiming to streamline healthcare data and enhance patient care nationwide. 

Amazon Web Services (AWS), a key player in cloud computing, is set to create digital health IDs and 'longitudinal health records' for Indian citizens, consolidating their health data under one platform. This initiative will be integrated into the repurposed CoWIN and Arogya Setu platforms. 

AWS has provided cloud infrastructure support for various India Stack applications, such as DigiLocker and CoWIN, the COVID-19 vaccine registration portal.  

While AWS has been collaborating with both state and central government agencies in India to deliver scalable and on-demand services in fields including education, transport, and agriculture, healthcare platforms have primarily operated independently. 

CoWIN, initially launched by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, has been transformed into a universal vaccination platform known as U-WIN.  

U-WIN is set to meet the vaccination needs of approximately 100 million individuals, including children aged zero to six, pregnant women, and lactating mothers. This platform already administers 12 other vaccines, including those for diphtheria, BCG, polio, and tetanus. 

Pankaj Gupta, leader of public sector enterprises and government at AWS India, said, "From the moment a child is born, there is a longitudinal health record. We can call this database that maintains a health record that is cradle to grave. It is now also being integrated with platforms centred around maternal and child health. As far as health is concerned, the government of India is looking at a lot of policy intervention." 

Among the recent additions is the Poshan Tracker, part of the National Nutrition Mission. It monitors nutrition for a target group of 100 million, covering children, pregnant women, and lactating mothers. Real-time data for this initiative is sourced from approximately 1.4 million Anganwadi centres across the country. 

Beyond health records, AWS is collaborating on the National Health Authority's Unified Health Interface (UHI). This project aims to create a foundational layer for other app developers, akin to the Unified Payments Interface (UPI). The government seeks to build a robust infrastructure for the public healthcare system through the UHI project. 

Arogya Setu, the government's health app, offers the ability to create a 14-digit health ID. Users can link existing and new health records, managed through a consent framework. This consolidation of health data eliminates the need to carry physical health records when moving between healthcare providers, streamlining patient care. 

These developments come in the wake of concerns about data governance on the CoWIN platform following an alleged data leak of user information collected during the COVID-19 vaccination drive. Pankaj Gupta assured that health records and repositories under the HealthLocker would be managed based on user consent for data processing. 

Notably, AWS has announced plans to increase its total investment in India to $16.4 billion by 2030, with the public sector being a crucial focus for the global cloud giant. This initiative demonstrates a significant step toward streamlining and enhancing healthcare data management in India.