Health Record Rights Index · country brief · this country's data as of October 1, 2026
Who holds the health record in Vanuatu?
In 2026, Vanuatu scores 34 out of 100 for how much say a person has over their own health record. It is tied for 132nd of 198 countries and territories, and could rank anywhere from 101st to 163rd 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 control over who sees it (32 out of 100, against 30 for the typical country). The furthest behind is one record across your care (22 out of 100, against 38 for the typical country).
Vanuatu's 2025 data protection law gives patients a free copy of their data, but records are mostly paper and no regulator was verified as appointed.
Published · updated · this country's data as of October 1, 2026 · research tool, not legal advice
overall score · Weak band, 25 to 44
34/100
rank among 198 countries and territories; likely 101st to 163rd, allowing for scoring error
Low confidence. Thin evidence on 4 of the 8 rights: your copy, privacy, research and AI rules. The evidence grade rates all our sources together; confidence looks at each right. Neither changes the score.
Questions people ask
Can I see my health record in Vanuatu?
In 2026, getting your full record scores 45 out of 100 in Vanuatu; the typical country scores 40 to 45. Since 2 January 2025, section 9 of the Data Protection and Privacy Act gives a free copy of personal data within one month. There is no patient portal, and the regulator who would enforce the right was not verified as appointed. Source: Department of Communication and Digital Transformation, December 5, 2024, and the other sources below.
Who controls health records in Vanuatu?
In 2026, doctors, hospitals and insurers hold the keys to your health record in Vanuatu. Control over who sees it scores 32 out of 100 in Vanuatu; the typical country scores 30. The 2024 Act lets health workers process health data for care without consent, and no opt-out from record sharing or patient-visible access log was found. Source: Department of Communication and Digital Transformation, December 5, 2024, and the other sources below.
How does Vanuatu compare?
In 2026, Vanuatu scores 34 out of 100, against 39 for the typical country. This brief compares it with Palau (33 out of 100), Samoa (30 out of 100) and Fiji (29 out of 100). Source: the ranking of all 198 countries and territories.
Eight rights, compared with Palau, Samoa, Fiji and the typical country
Scores out of 100, by right
Getting your full record20%
45
35 · 25 · 35
Control over who sees it20%
32
30 · 25 · 28
Privacy and security15%
45
32 · 25 · 30
One record across your care15%
22
38 · 45 · 30
Protection from sale and ads10%
35
18 · 20 · 20
Doctors see it when treating you10%
18
40 · 48 · 25
Your say over research use5%
46
49 · 43 · 43
Rules for AI in your care5%
22
20 · 18 · 18
Black dot: Vanuatu. Hollow dots: Palau, Samoa, Fiji (scores out of 100 on the right, same order). Gray line: the typical country of all 198. Overall: Vanuatu 34 out of 100. Scores move in steps of about 5 points, so read a rank with its likely range.
What would Vanuatu need to change to score higher?
Vanuatu 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 (22 out of 100, against 38 for the typical country) and doctors see it when treating you (18 out of 100, against 33 to 34 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.
Doctors see it when treating you: Doctors who treat you able to see your full record from other providers, with your consent and emergency rules in place.
Which laws give health record rights in Vanuatu?
Data Protection and Privacy Act No. 13 of 2024: Health is special category data; free copy within one month; objection rights; fines up to VT10,000,000.
Digital Safety Authority Act No. 15 of 2024: Creates the Digital Safety Authority and the Deputy Commissioner of Data Protection and Privacy.
Right to Information Act No. 13 of 2016: Right to request government records, 30-day decision deadline, appeal to an Information Commissioner.
Doctors, waits and private care context, not part of the score
Doctors per 10,000
1.6 2019
Nurses and midwives per 10,000
14.6 2019
Private insurance + out-of-pocket
11.5% 2023
Record reaches private care?
unknown
Real cases
We found no real cases published in the last two years.
In 2026, Vanuatu scored 34 out of 100 for how much say a person has over their own health record, tied for 132nd of 198 countries and territories (could be 101st to 163rd), 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/vanuatu/
The 8 sources for Vanuatu
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 and Privacy Act No. 13 of 2024”
Department of Communication and Digital Transformation (law or regulation) · Title in English
Dated December 5, 2024 · 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; Rules for AI in your care
Ministry of Health (government guidance) · Title in English
Dated 2025 · Link checked October 2, 2026 (opened)
Used for: Getting your full record; Control over who sees it; Privacy and security; One record across your care; Doctors see it when treating you; Rules for AI in your care
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/vanuatu/#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.
