Telemedicine in the Czech Republic: Innovation at a Crossroads

In recent years, telemedicine and remote care in the Czech healthcare system have evolved from pilot projects to topics that have the potential to transform both the accessibility and organization of healthcare services. More advanced technologies are available, providers have gained experience, and efforts are underway to create a stable framework for their use. Nevertheless, a number of questions remain unresolved. These primarily concern the legislative definition of telemedicine services, their financing through public health insurance, the assessment of their health economic benefits, and the status of software and other technologies as medical devices. Czech telemedicine thus finds itself at a crossroads where technological development, the need for cost savings, the expectations of patients and providers, and the ongoing European digitization of healthcare all converge.

The most comprehensive project is the National Recovery Plan initiative at the Olomouc University Hospital. Its goal is to create a framework for the provision of remote health services. At its core is the Czech National eHealth Center (NTMC), which has served since 2020 as the Competence Center for Telemedicine under the Ministry of Health of the Czech Republic and as a reference point for remote care.

Without stable funding, innovative technologies will not gain traction. Therefore, part of the project involved developing a methodology for reimbursing new technologies. This methodology is designed to enable an assessment of their health economic benefits and covers both outpatient and inpatient care, including medical device prescriptions, healthcare procedures, and separately billed materials (ZUM).

According to Section 11c of Act No. 372/2011 Sb., on Health Services, this refers to care provided remotely using information and communication technologies or a medical device. Unless it involves only a chat or video call, the law requires the use of a medical device placed on the market in accordance with the MDR or IVDR. These devices, including standalone software, lend objectivity and medical validity to the data.

Three Major Present Forces

The first is political pressure for cost-effectiveness in health technologies. The cost savings sought are expected to lead to a new methodology for ZUM reimbursement and its incorporation into legislation. Solutions incorporating ZUM will thus have to demonstrate their clinical benefit in relation to costs more rigorously.

The second is the managed entry of innovations into the reimbursement system. At the end of April 2026, VZP announced that it intends to introduce AI and telemedicine, including “provisional reimbursements.” However, the market still lacks specific rules as well as a binding methodology. Is a truly Czech equivalent of DiGA emerging?

The third driver is the Regulation on the European Health Data Space (EHDS), which establishes a unified framework for the use of health data in the EU. It will support digitization, telemedicine, and research, and will compel national systems to digitize and harmonize standards.

Telemedicine presents an opportunity for both healthcare providers and technology companies. However, success depends not only on high-quality software but also on a thorough understanding of the regulatory framework, clinical practice, and reimbursement mechanisms. It will be necessary to combine technological know-how with legal and methodological preparedness.

Author: Aleš Martinovský