What is a DiGA?
The abbreviation DiGA stands for "Digital Health Application". It refers to a digital offering or program that can be prescribed by doctors or psychotherapists since October 2020. The legal basis for this is the DVG (Digital Care Act).
What a DiGA really is is easier to understand with the colloquial term "app on prescription. A DiGA does not, however, have to be an app.
Web applications and other programs can also be approved as such. What they all have in common is that they must be a CE-marked medical device in risk class I or IIa. This classification means the certified product poses at most a low risk to the user and cannot cause physical harm.
This clearly sets a DiGA apart from the now widespread health apps and they should not be confused with them.
The requirements for the "app on prescription" are, as described above, very high. They are subject to strict controls and must prove their medical benefit and effectiveness. A health app, on the other hand, can be called that by any manufacturer. There is no formal definition of the term "health app", and any claimed health benefits do not have to be proven. Labeling as a medical device is optional for health apps at best, not mandatory.
A DiGA is made for the user and should first and foremost benefit them.
It should help them detect, monitor, treat, or alleviate illnesses, which is referred to as medical benefit. Other such applications improve the structures and processes around the user's medical care. This is called structural and procedural improvement.
How does a user get an "app on prescription"?
The user can have a DiGA prescribed by their doctor or psychotherapist. Another option, if you cannot get a prescription, is to apply to your health insurance for permission to use the DiGA. However, a diagnosis must be present to show that using it is appropriate.
The user will then usually receive a code that they must enter in the respective app in order to use it.
This article comes from BloodPressureDB – the leading app since 2011 that helps hundreds of thousands monitor their blood pressure every day.
Our content is based on carefully researched, evidence-based data and is continuously updated (as of 06/2024).
Author Sabine Croci is a qualified medical assistant with many years of experience in internal medicine and cardiology practices as well as in outpatient care, and has led BloodPressureDB's specialist editorial team since 2015. Thanks to her extensive additional qualifications as a paramedic, first responder and in various therapy and emergency areas, she provides solid, practical and reliably reviewed information.
Author Sabine Croci is a qualified medical assistant with many years of experience in internal medicine and cardiology practices as well as in outpatient care, and has led BloodPressureDB's specialist editorial team since 2015. Thanks to her extensive additional qualifications as a paramedic, first responder and in various therapy and emergency areas, she provides solid, practical and reliably reviewed information.
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