Twenty percent of Estonia’s population has genetic data stored in the Estonian biobank —yet the potential of this data remains largely untapped.
Currently, gene and health data are not easily accessible to Estonian companies for research and development. Additionally, even with donor consent, doctors cannot directly request genetic data from the biobank for use in a patient’s personalized treatment plan. Although individuals can request their own data from the gene bank and share it with their doctor, this process adds unnecessary bureaucracy.
In collaboration with Antegenes, Accelerate Estonia has been exploring the legal and bureaucratic obstacles to using genetic data in personalized medicine and how overcoming these barriers could open new doors for the future of healthcare. The process has now been handed over to the Ministry of Social Affairs, which identified 11 laws that need amending to enable the broader use of personalized medicine in Estonia. The ministry is actively working on these legislative changes, aiming to have them in place by early 2026.
