Health Record Rights Index · country brief · this country's data as of October 1, 2026
Who holds the health record in Lesotho?
In 2026, Lesotho scores 35 out of 100 for how much say a person has over their own health record. It is tied for 121st of 198 countries and territories, and could rank anywhere from 96th to 157th allowing for scoring error, in the Weak band (25 to 44). Who holds the keys: doctors, hospitals and insurers. Source: Health Record Rights Index, SuperTruth, this country's data as of October 1, 2026.
Doctors, hospitals and insurers decide. Its strongest right, compared with the typical country, is your say over research use (49 out of 100, against 46 for the typical country). The furthest behind is one record across your care (30 out of 100, against 38 for the typical country).
Lesotho's 2012 data protection law has no regulator, and only HIV and TB care runs on a shared electronic record.
Published · updated · this country's data as of October 1, 2026 · research tool, not legal advice
overall score · Weak band, 25 to 44
35/100
rank among 198 countries and territories; likely 96th to 157th, allowing for scoring error
In 2026, getting your full record scores 35 out of 100 in Lesotho; the typical country scores 40 to 45. Section 26 of the Data Protection Act gives a right to get your data, but at a prescribed fee and within a prescribed time, and the regulator meant to enforce it was never set up. There is no patient portal. Source: dataprotection.africa, February 22, 2012, and the other sources below.
Who controls health records in Lesotho?
In 2026, doctors, hospitals and insurers hold the keys to your health record in Lesotho. Control over who sees it scores 30 out of 100 in Lesotho; the typical country scores 30. Providers may process health data without consent for treatment and running the facility, and there is no sharing setting or access log a patient can use. Insurers may assess risk with health data unless the person has objected. Source: dataprotection.africa, February 22, 2012, and the other sources below.
How does Lesotho compare?
In 2026, Lesotho scores 35 out of 100, against 39 for the typical country. This brief compares it with Angola (35 out of 100), Burundi (35 out of 100) and Burkina Faso (35 out of 100). Source: the ranking of all 198 countries and territories.
Eight rights, compared with Angola, Burundi, Burkina Faso and the typical country
Scores out of 100, by right
Getting your full record20%
35
35 · 40 · 35
Control over who sees it20%
30
30 · 28 · 32
Privacy and security15%
45
52 · 45 · 48
One record across your care15%
30
22 · 30 · 25
Protection from sale and ads10%
40
50 · 40 · 45
Doctors see it when treating you10%
30
20 · 22 · 20
Your say over research use5%
49
50 · 50 · 49
Rules for AI in your care5%
28
28 · 20 · 30
Black dot: Lesotho. Hollow dots: Angola, Burundi, Burkina Faso (scores out of 100 on the right, same order). Gray line: the typical country of all 198. Overall: Lesotho 35 out of 100. Scores move in steps of about 5 points, so read a rank with its likely range.
What would Lesotho need to change to score higher?
Lesotho sits in Weak (25 to 44); Mixed starts at 45. Its two weakest rights, compared with the typical country and weighted by how much each counts, are one record across your care (30 out of 100, against 38 for the typical country) and getting your full record (35 out of 100, against 40 to 45 for the typical country). Our scoring rules give more points for:
One record across your care: Family doctors, hospitals, labs, pharmacies, insurers and public health all linked to one record that is used across the country.
Getting your full record: A national portal that shows most people at least part of their record (a summary, prescriptions, lab results) puts this right at 60 to 75 out of 100. A near-full record that you can download, with a long history and used by most people, puts it at 76 to 90.
Which laws give health record rights in Lesotho?
Data Protection Act, 2011 (Act No. 5 of 2012): Health is sensitive data; access, correction and marketing objection rights; breach notice; Commission never established.
Lesotho Medicines and Medical Devices Control Authority Act, 2023 (Act No. 6 of 2023): Creates a regulator for medicines and medical devices and clinical trials; in force from 1 March 2026.
Artificial Intelligence Policy (policy, not law) (2026): Notes no AI-specific regulation exists; assigns AI oversight to sector regulators through future legislation.
Doctors, waits and private care context, not part of the score
Doctors per 10,000
1.8 2024
Nurses and midwives per 10,000
34.0 2024
Private insurance + out-of-pocket
unknown
Record reaches private care?
unknown
Real cases
November 5, 2025 · Lesotho Times Former miners say missing cross-border records leave them unable to prove claims
October 13, 2025 · MNN Centre for Investigative Journalism Former miner says a work-related medical certification was kept from him for years
In 2026, Lesotho scored 35 out of 100 for how much say a person has over their own health record, tied for 121st of 198 countries and territories (could be 96th to 157th), in the Weak band. Who holds the keys: doctors, hospitals and insurers. Source: Health Record Rights Index, SuperTruth, this country's data as of October 1, 2026, https://healthrecordrights.com/brief/lesotho/
The 14 sources for Lesotho
Each source appears once, under the first right it supports. Titles are shown as our research agents recorded them, usually in the page's own language; text in square brackets is our machine translation. Links were checked on the date shown.
Getting your full record (3 sources)
“Data Protection Act, 2011 (Act No. 5 of 2012), Lesotho Government Gazette No. 19”
dataprotection.africa (law or regulation) · Title in English
Dated February 22, 2012 · Link checked October 2, 2026 (opened)
Used for: Getting your full record; Control over who sees it; Privacy and security; Protection from sale and ads; Your say over research use
SuperTruth Inc. · 24 S. 24th St., Philadelphia, PA 19103, USA · +1 215 918 4140 · supertruth.ai Something wrong? Tell us · Questions or a briefing: supertruth.ai/on-the-record#contact · Full index: healthrecordrights.com
OECD: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (38 mostly high-income countries). DTI™: the Data Trust Index, which grades the evidence behind each score. SuperTruth makes it and publishes this index. Everything here comes from public information: laws, government and regulator pages, court decisions, published news, WHO, OECD and World Bank data. Full sources: https://healthrecordrights.com/brief/lesotho/#sources. SuperTruth built this index and sells health data verification products; no one paid to be included. Research tool, not legal advice. Our scores and our own words are CC BY 4.0; quoted law and source titles stay with their owners.
