Who Holds the Record · country brief · data as of 2026-10-01Who holds the health record in Tonga?
In 2026, Tonga scores 46 of 100 on a person's right to see, control and share their own health record: rank 66= of 196 countries (likely range 49 to 89), in the Mixed band (45 to 64). Who holds the keys: State. Source: Who Holds the Record, SuperTruth, data as of 2026-10-01.
Tonga runs one national health record in every facility and passed a health privacy law in 2025, but the Ministry enforces it on itself.
Published · updated · data as of 2026-10-01 · research tool, not legal advice
Can I get my health records in Tonga?
Access to the full record scores 45 of 100 in Tonga, against a median of 43 across 196 countries. Section 57 of the Personal Health Information Protection Act 2025 gives a right to see and copy one's record, including in electronic form, with a reply due within 30 days. There is no patient portal, and custodians may charge cost-recovery fees.
Can I control who sees my health record in Tonga?
Control and consent scores 42 of 100 in Tonga, against a median of 30 across 196 countries. The 2025 Act lets patients revoke consent, tell custodians not to share, and flag sensitive information, but sharing for care runs on implied consent inside the Ministry's NHIS. Access is logged, yet no right for patients to see the log was found.
Eight rights, against New Zealand, Nauru, Vanuatu and the EU
| Patient access to the full record20% | 45 | 55 · 28 · 45 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Patient control and consent20% | 42 | 47 · 35 · 32 | |
| Privacy and security15% | 45 | 50 · 38 · 45 | |
| Connected care journey15% | 58 | 40 · 65 · 22 | |
| Protection from commercial use10% | 40 | 52 · 40 · 35 | |
| Clinician access at the point of care10% | 60 | 40 · 68 · 18 | |
| Research and trial consent5% | 46 | 50 · 50 · 46 | |
| Clinical AI governance5% | 20 | 40 · 20 · 22 |
Black dot: Tonga. Hollow dots: New Zealand, Nauru, Vanuatu (scores on the right, same order). Grey line: median of all 196 countries. Dashed teal line: EU median. Overall: Tonga 46, EU median 61. Scores move in steps of about 5; read the rank with its likely range.
What would Tonga need to change to score higher?
Tonga sits in Mixed (45 to 64); Strong starts at 65. The two rights furthest below the 196-country median, weighted, are protection from commercial use (40, median 45) and clinical AI governance (20, median 30). The published rubric reads:
- Protection from commercial use: Clear limits on selling health data or using it for marketing, covering apps and data brokers as well as providers.
- Clinical AI governance: Device regulation of clinical AI with change control and human oversight in force, plus national rules where EU law leaves gaps.
Which laws give health record rights in Tonga?
- Personal Health Information Protection Act 2025 (Act 31 of 2025) (2025): Consent, access within 30 days, audit logs, breach notice, marketing ban, research rules and NHIS governance.
- Privacy Act 2025 (Act 34 of 2025) (2025): General data protection law and Privacy Commission; health is sensitive data; awaits Cabinet commencement proclamation.
- Civil Registration and Digital Identification Act 2025 (Act 33 of 2025) (2025): Upgraded civil registration, a digital ID database and unique identifier numbers; births notified to the Ministry of Health.
Strain and split context, not scored
- Doctors per 10,000
- 10.1 2021
- Nurses and midwives per 10,000
- 42.0 2021
- Private insurance + out-of-pocket
- 7.0% 2023
- Record reaches private care?
- unknown
Published stories
- 2025-06-20 · The Record from Recorded Future News Health ministry says ransomware locked the system holding every patient's history
- 2025-06-26 · RNZ Patients asked to bring their own records after national health records breach
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