Secondary use under the European Health Data Space: setting the scene and towards a research agenda on privacy-enhancing technologies

The Regulation for European Health Data Space (EHDS) aims to address the fragmented health data landscape across Europe by promoting ethical and responsible reuse of data, seeking to balance the opportunities for data reuse with the risks it entails. However, the techno-legal aspects of navigating this balance remain poorly understood. This study adopts a qualitative and inductive approach, using semi-structured interviews to explore the risks, challenges, and gaps in the implementation of privacy-enhancing technologies (PETs) within EHDS, particularly in the context of its governance structure and data permits for secondary data use. The findings identify five distinct categories of concerns, based on fourteen risks, and highlight seven governance and technological solutions, illustrating how these solutions address multiple, often correlated risks. The interdependence between concerns and solutions emphasises the need for a strategic and integrated approach to both governance and technology. This mapping between the risks and solutions also highlights the central role of certain solutions, such as public engagement and awareness, in addressing multiple risks. Furthermore, it introduces a new dimension to the concerns by focusing on the structural imbalances in access to the health data economy. We conclude by proposing a research agenda to advance the integration of PETs into the EHDS framework, ensuring that data permits can effectively facilitate secure, ethical, and innovative health data use.