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Who holds the health record in the United Arab Emirates?

In 2026, the United Arab Emirates scores 55 of 100 on a person's right to see, control and share their own health record: rank 37= of 65 countries, in the Mixed band (45 to 64). Who holds the keys: Shared. Source: Who Holds the Record, SuperTruth, data as of 2026-10-02.

The person has real controls inside a state or provider system. Its strongest right against the other countries is connected care journey (80, against a median of 62 across 65 countries); its weakest is patient access to the full record (35, median 62).

Each emirate runs its own shared record with near-universal reach, but patient copy rights and opt-outs come from emirate regulators, not federal law.

Published · updated · data as of 2026-10-02 · research tool, not legal advice

55overall, of 100 · Mixed
37=rank of 65
Sharedwho holds the keys
highconfidence
75 · Silverevidence grade (DTI)

Can I get my health records in the United Arab Emirates?

Access to the full record scores 35 of 100 in the United Arab Emirates, against a median of 62 across 65 countries. No federal law gives patients a right to a copy of their record; the right sits in Abu Dhabi and Dubai regulator standards. Three government portals show part of the record by region, which lifts the cell to the top of its band (35) and no further.

Can I control who sees my health record in the United Arab Emirates?

Control and consent scores 48 of 100 in the United Arab Emirates, against a median of 52 across 65 countries. Each emirate has a different rule: Riayati lets Northern Emirates patients opt out and promises access notices, Dubai's NABIDH takes opt-outs by signed form, and Abu Dhabi's Malaffi makes participation universal. The blend sits mid-band at 48.

Eight rights, against Saudi Arabia, Israel, Egypt and the EU

Patient access to the full record20%3564 · 66 · 30
Patient control and consent20%4832 · 50 · 25
Privacy and security15%5050 · 58 · 36
Connected care journey15%8070 · 78 · 35
Protection from commercial use10%5654 · 56 · 40
Clinician access at the point of care10%7654 · 75 · 30
Research and trial consent5%4646 · 49 · 50
Clinical AI governance5%6458 · 50 · 40

Black dot: United Arab Emirates. Hollow dots: Saudi Arabia, Israel, Egypt (scores on the right, same order). Grey line: median of all 65 countries. Dashed teal line: EU median. Overall: United Arab Emirates 55, EU median 61. Scores move in steps of about 5; gaps of 4 or less are ties.

What would the United Arab Emirates need to change to score higher?

The United Arab Emirates sits in Mixed (45 to 64); Strong starts at 65. The two rights furthest below the 65-country median, weighted, are patient access to the full record (35, median 62) and patient control and consent (48, median 52). The published rubric reads:

  • Patient access to the full record: A national portal showing at least part of the record (summary, prescriptions, labs) to most residents puts access at 60 to 75; a near-full record with export, long history and majority use, 76 to 90.
  • Patient control and consent: An opt-out or opt-in, a patient-visible access log and granular choices together put control at 60 to 80.

Which laws give health record rights in the United Arab Emirates?

  • Federal Law No. 2 of 2019 on the Use of ICT in Health Fields (2019): Confidentiality, central exchange, 25-year retention, health data kept in the UAE, fines and licence sanctions.
  • Federal Decree-Law No. 45 of 2021 on the Protection of Personal Data (2021): General privacy law; excludes health data with its own law and government entities.
  • Federal Decree-Law No. 38 of 2024 on Medical Products (2024): Regulates medical devices including AI-based products; design changes need new approval.

Strain and split context, not scored

Doctors per 10,000
29.9 2023
Nurses and midwives per 10,000
61.6 2023
Private insurance + out-of-pocket
13.1% 2023
Record reaches private care?
connected

Compulsory private insurance, counted separately: 16.5% of health spending (2023).

"Abu Dhabi’s first Health Information Exchange (HIE) platform, Malaffi, has announced that all public and private hospitals in the Emirate are now connected to the platform."

Published stories

  • 2025-06-11 · Semafor Gulf Ransomware group claims it stole patient records from a private hospital
  • 2025-05-09 · Emarat Al Youm Regulator closes four clinics that wrote visits that never happened into medical files

Compare the United Arab Emirates

Cite this brief

In 2026, the United Arab Emirates scored 55 of 100 on a person's right to see, control and share their own health record, rank 37= of 65 countries (Mixed; who holds the keys: Shared). Source: Who Holds the Record, SuperTruth, data as of 2026-10-02, https://whoholds.supertruth.ai/brief/ARE/

Sources for the United Arab Emirates (23)

SuperTruth Inc. · 24 S. 24th St., Philadelphia, PA 19103, USA · +1 215 918 4140 · supertruth.ai
Questions, corrections or a briefing: supertruth.ai/on-the-record#contact · Full index: whoholds.supertruth.ai
OECD: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (38 mostly high-income countries). DTI: SuperTruth's Data Trust Index, grading the evidence behind each score. Everything here comes from public information: laws, government and regulator pages, court decisions, published news, WHO, OECD and World Bank data. Full sources: https://whoholds.supertruth.ai/brief/ARE/#sources. SuperTruth built this index and sells health data verification products; no one paid to be included. Research tool, not legal advice. Text and scores CC BY 4.0.