Blockchain for healthcare: Breaking the chains of fragmented care
Blockchain builds trust where data flows, and in healthcare, that trust is critical. For over a decade, we’ve delivered blockchain for healthcare solutions that ensure visibility, traceability, and foolproof security. Our 2025 guide brings together hard-earned expertise and deep industry insight.
What’s the current (and future) state of blockchain in healthcare?
In 2023, the blockchain in healthcare market was valued at $7.04B. By 2030, it’s projected to soar to $218B (an impressive CAGR of 63.3 percent), with supply chain management, clinical trials, consent management, data exchange, and interoperability among the top blockchain-based healthcare applications.
Eugene Kruglik, our healthcare engineer manager, shares his assumptions on the hottest blockchain for healthcare trend in 2025 and beyond.
I believe 2025 will see the unprecedented convergence of blockchain and artificial intelligence.
Thanks to this perfect match of brain and brawn, the industry will get:
- AI models trained on valid, consented, and ethically sourced data
- Auditable trail of what, when, and why AI said
- Secure AI-driven health alerts from wearables.”
Healthcare Engineer Manager at Vention
Core traits of blockchain in the healthcare industry
These are the built-in advantages blockchain brings to the table, no matter what kind of solution you develop:
Decentralization
Think of a blockchain as a medical notebook shared among many institutions engaged in care, such as hospitals, clinics, labs, insurance companies, and pharmacies.
What sets it apart from traditional shared databases? In blockchain, all participants are equals: no single party controls the records. The identical versions of entries live with every institution, and no participant can create an entry their peers aren’t aware of.
This approach improves coordination between healthcare players and eliminates the need for repeat data entries.
Immutability and auditability
Once sealed in the blockchain, no record (a diagnosis, treatment plan, prescription, or insurance claim) can be changed or deleted. Every action is visible and traceable, creating a clear audit trail of who did what and when. This brings complete visibility and traceability to medical histories and processes. Additionally, it’s an efficient measure to reduce fraud.
That means immutability doesn’t mean you have just one chance to enter the record and must live with what you have forever. Corrections can be added as new entries while the original remains untouched, ensuring both accuracy and accountability.
Interoperability
Blockchain can serve as a bridge between different IT ecosystems, connecting otherwise unconnected software. It allows, for example, a specialist in another city to view a patient’s medical history, or a pharmacy to check against a patient’s list of allergies.
And no, this isn’t just a future ideal where every provider uses blockchain. A blockchain system can generate a secure link accessible via a web portal or export a file, preserving all blockchain qualities like security, traceability, and controlled access.
Data security
Blockchain leverages advanced cryptographic algorithms to keep sensitive patient data protected. Encrypted end-to-end and accessible only with proper authorization ensures privacy and prevents unauthorized alterations.
Cost reduction and operational efficiency
Blockchain cuts out the intermediaries and reduces paperwork. With a shared ledger as the single source of truth, blockchain participants no longer waste time reconciling records. As a result, blockchain adopters spend less time (and money) on administrative work.
Essential features of blockchain healthcare solutions
Controlled access
The visibility blockchain enables doesn’t come at the cost of privacy. Personal health data isn’t exposed to everyone, only to those with the right permissions. With flexible, fine-grained access controls, you decide who can view specific data, what they can see, and when.
The remaining participants with no read rights will only see a new record created. Imagine a patient who can share a private access key with a new ophthalmologist by providing 30-day access to ophthalmology-related records.
Emergency access
Patients can pre-set access to their medical records in case of an emergency.
Alternatively, a break-glass protocol can be designed and implemented: it’s the situation where a person with an emergency team ID can access a patient’s critical data even when the patient hasn’t provided their direct consent for this.
Automation via smart contracts
A reminder is triggered when a patient misses a dose. A claim is processed the moment a procedure is confirmed. Anonymized data will be shared for a clinical trial as soon as consent is given.
Imagine these and dozens of other routines happening automatically when certain conditions are met. That would mean fewer manual steps, fewer errors, and far greater efficiency overall.
Pain points that blockchain can solve
For healthcare providers
- Patient data is scattered across facilities and geographies, making real-time access difficult and requiring manual reconciliation
- Limited visibility into who accessed or edited medical data, which poses compliance risks
- Inefficient patient consent management for data sharing
- Risk of data breaches of centralized systems
- Billing and coding errors that lead to delayed reimbursements and revenue loss.
For pharmaceutical and life science companies
- Inefficient management of trials: consent tracking, enrollment, protocol adherence, and trial outcomes
- Lack of transparency in global manufacturing and distribution chains, which may lead to the proliferation of counterfeit drugs or improper storage and transportation conditions
- Difficult-to-prove intellectual property claims due to siloed and inconsistent data storage.
For health insurance companies
- Easy-to-execute and hard-to-detect fraud
- Complex claims processing causing slow reimbursements
- Inefficient data verification from multiple third-party sources
- No clear audit trail for dispute resolution
- Manual reconciliation of co-payments and deductibles.
Patients (and patient advocacy groups)
- Lack of convenient access to their medical records
- Difficulty transferring data between healthcare providers
- No control over who accesses or uses their data
- No ability to participate in the monetization of anonymized data
- Difficulty proving participation in clinical trials or receiving related incentives.
Blockchain solutions for healthcare
Curious what blockchain can do in healthcare? The short answer: a lot. Look at blockchain technology applications in healthcare that have proven their value.
Solution type
Key features
Health record management
Solution type
- Blockchain-powered EHR
- Interoperability software
Key features
- Immutable health record storage
- Audit trails for data access
- Secure patient ID
- Consent tracking
Supply chain traceability
Solution type
- Drug/medical device traceability platforms
- Blockchain-IoT integration
Key features
- Chain-of-custody tracking
- Real-time verification of shipment status and conditions
- Supplier chain management
Claims, billing, and anti-fraud
Solution type
- Smart contract-based claim processing
- Billing systems
- Claims auditing platforms
- ID validation systems
Key features
- Smart contracts for automation
- Immutable audit logs
- Fraud analytics
Payments
Solution type
- Crypto-based payment gateways
- Cross-border blockchain remittance platforms
Key features
- Instant peer-to-peer transactions
- Tokenized settlements for medical services
- Crypto rewards in wellness or research platforms
Clinical trials and research
Solution type
- Consent platforms
- Trial registries
- Decentralized trial data storage
Key features
- Tamper-proof clinical trial records
- Consent verification
- Transparent result logging
- Anonymized data sharing
Medical IoT and remote care
Solution type
- Blockchain-secured IoT gateways
Key features
- Secure data logging
- Real-time monitoring
- Alert triggers via smart contracts
- Chain of trust for device calibration
Data monetization and sharing
Solution type
- Health data marketplaces
- Tokenized consent platforms
- Incentive platforms
- Behavior-based insurance rewards
Key features
- Incentive mechanisms (tokens, credits)
- Anonymized data vaults
- Transparent data use terms
- Smart contract-based compensation
Regulatory compliance
Solution type
- Compliance automation tools
- Audit systems
Key features
- Automated audit logs
- HIPAA/GDPR-compliant data access
- Consent lifecycle tracking
- Tamper-evident compliance history
Intellectual property
Solution type
- Blockchain-based IP registries
- Decentralized R&D collaboration platforms
Key features
- Timestamped intellectual property registry
- Transparent R&D collaboration
- Proof-of-ownership for medical innovations
Disease tracking and outbreak management
Solution type
- Distributed data coordination tools
Key features
- Real-time, tamper-evident reporting of outbreaks
- Secure sharing between hospitals, labs, and authorities
- Patient privacy-safe statistical tracking
Don’t stay chained to your old systems
Let’s build your blockchain-powered future: secure, streamlined, and ready to scale. Our blockchain discovery service will help you map the right path forward.
Well-known brands using blockchain
Mayo Clinic
Mayo Clinic has implemented blockchain-powered data integrity solutions to streamline clinical trial operations. From trial initiation to closure and follow-up, these solutions support the entire process, ensuring the integrity of data collected from an ever-growing number of sources.
Novartis
Novartis participates in the MELLODDY project, which uses blockchain to enable multiple pharmaceutical companies to collaboratively train AI models on proprietary chemical libraries without exposing sensitive data. Novartis is also exploring blockchain to replace traditional paper medicine leaflets with digital versions.
Anthem
Anthem piloted a blockchain-powered solution that puts patients in control of their medical records. Through decentralized identity management, members can grant or revoke access via a mobile app, streamlining data exchange between providers, payers, and patients.
How does blockchain work in healthcare?
Data entry and hashing
It all starts with your usual healthcare workflows and systems. Say, a physician adds a diagnosis, updates a care plan, and prescribes medications, all done in an EHR as usual.
A blockchain-integrated plugin or system detects the new entries and extracts key data elements. For each one, it generates a unique digital fingerprint (called a hash). For example, one for the diagnosis, one for the care plan, and one for the prescription.
Each hash is bundled with the timestamp, a pseudonymized patient identifier, and the source system ID, all of which form a block that will permanently be stored on the blockchain if validated.
Validation
When a new block is created, it must be reviewed and approved by trusted blockchain nodes. These aren’t people or healthcare institutions; they’re infrastructure systems that verify the block's technical integrity.
When they receive validation requests, they trigger automated background checks to verify whether a hash is correctly formatted, unique, and mathematically matches the original data input. The nodes check for technical validity and prevent duplicate entries; they don’t assess the data's medical accuracy.
To be added to the blockchain, a block must achieve consensus, a pre-defined agreement among nodes. Depending on the chosen consensus mechanism, that might mean a majority vote or approval from a specific trusted node.
Block storage
Once verified, the block becomes a part of the digital ledger. The storage organization is what makes blockchain immutable: each block is tightly linked with the previous one. This link is formed using a combination of a timestamped hash and a pointer to the previous block. An attempt to interfere with a single block would break all the following links, making any tampering instantly detectable.
Full medical records live safely off-chain (inside hospital systems or encrypted cloud storage).
Challenges of blockchain in healthcare
Even as a next-gen technology, blockchain comes with its own set of challenges. The good news is that we know how to address them.
Blockchain’s immutability can conflict with the right to be forgotten granted by laws like GDPR.
Ways to overcome them
With a smart on-chain strategy, you avoid compliance risks altogether. Blockchain doesn’t need to store sensitive data: just a hash, timestamp, and metadata. This way, the blockchain acts as proof of existence for off-chain records stored in fully compliant systems.
Integration with existing healthcare systems may require significant effort, especially if we need to connect legacy software.
Ways to overcome them
But with the right plan, it’s fully manageable.
Many integration solutions are available, including gradual refactoring of legacy systems and custom API development. A risk-free approach would include auditing the existing infrastructure and designing a detailed integration plan and timelines before blockchain development starts.
Transaction fees on public blockchains can become costly in data-heavy environments like healthcare.
Ways to overcome them
If public blockchains don’t work for you, go for private blockchains. You need your own servers, but you save on transaction processing fees.
Alternatively, you can use a public blockchain and a layer two solution, which processes most transactions off the main chain. This keeps costs low while still anchoring key data to a public blockchain for added security.
Not all healthcare players are blockchain-ready, which can limit your ability to fully scale its benefits.
Ways to overcome them
While others wait for a “perfect” moment, you can gain an edge. You may need to set up a web portal that lets non-blockchain users securely access blockchain-generated links, but the value blockchain delivers makes the effort worthwhile.
If you operate in the US and Europe, you must meet different regulatory compliance rules (HIPAA and GDPR). Yet, you likely want a unified solution, not a patchwork of country-specific systems.
Ways to overcome them
Try the modular design of the blockchain-powered system, with separate modules following country-specific rules and data flows and a core layer that connects them all.
Still facing roadblocks to blockchain adoption?
Let’s move forward together. With deep healthcare expertise and proven blockchain proficiency, our team delivers the kind of engineering peace of mind that makes innovation feel effortless.
How Vention can help
We’re ready to help you wherever you’re on your journey to adopting blockchain technology.
Blockchain workshop
Explore the transformative potential of blockchain, with your processes and goals at the center. Whether you're just testing the waters or actively exploring options, we’ll help you:
- Elicit your needs and align goals.
- Understand if blockchain can bring improvements in the clinical or operational areas.
- Surface low-risk, high-value applications of blockchain for healthcare.
Blockchain consulting
We lay the groundwork for smooth implementation with a thorough, well-structured preparation phase. You'll receive architecture blueprints detailing node structure, the recommended consensus algorithm, and smart contract logic. You'll also have a clear understanding of what data remains off-chain and which elements will be hashed and stored on-chain.
Additionally, our team provides a tailored integration plan for your EHR, practice management software, and other clinical and operational systems, aligned with your specific use cases. Finally, we help you define security controls that align with relevant compliance requirements.
Blockchain development
We turn blueprints and designs into code to deliver blockchain architecture, consensus mechanism logic, data flows, and smart contracts. To give you confidence and test ideas with real users, we start from a minimum viable product delivery and gradually roll out full-scale development.
Blockchain development services for healthcare are not limited to coding. At every stage, we rigorously test technical performance, assess usability in real clinical workflows, and incorporate user feedback to ensure a solution that truly delivers.
Why Vention is your go-to blockchain development company
Years in blockchain development
Years in healthcare software development
Senior blockchain engineers
Dedicated healthcare experts
Blockchain projects
Healthcare projects completed for the likes of Thirty Madison and Dialogue
Hear from our expert
Every project is a new chapter for us. We don’t rely on past decisions or default to familiar tools. We let your goals and context guide the way.
When you ask us which blockchain platform is the right fit, our answer is grounded in thorough analysis and technical due diligence. And sometimes, the best solution isn’t even a single platform, but rather a hybrid architecture designed to deliver both performance and compliance across your ecosystem.”
Eugene Kruglik
Heathcare engineering manager
What our clients say about us
John Payne
CEO, Croquet
“I was most impressed with Vention collaboration and technical skills. We work in an emerging industry, and Vention worked with technology they hadn’t used before. During the project’s development, Vention was required to invent solutions in order to resolve problems, and they figured out answers quickly”
David Dawson
CTO, Mast Mobile
“They offer great technical people and a pragmatic approach to working within any customer constraints. Vention has been a great partner and would not change anything.”
Christopher Osborn
CTO, Voxy
“They offer great technical people and a pragmatic approach to working within any customer constraints. Vention has been a great partner and would not change anything.”
Ken Apple
VP Product Engineering, Gulf Relay
“What makes this company unique is the people. Every person we have interacted with from Vention from intake to the lowest-level worker, is all-in on our success. You hear it and feel it in their actions. This is not a job to them. They are committed partners and we wouldn't be where we are today without them.”
Technology that builds trust
Take a peek under the hood: Here’s the technology we use to build secure, scalable, and regulation-ready blockchain solutions for healthcare.
Blockchain platforms
Hyperledger Fabric
Solana
BNB Chain
Ethereum
Polygon
Libraries and tools
Ethers.js
web3.py
Alcemy
web3.js
Infura
Decentralized storage
IPFS
Frameworks
Hardhat
Truffle
Brownie
Smart contracts
Solidity
Vyper
OpenZeppelin
Oracles and data feeds
ChainLink
Interoperability and wallets
WalletConnect
MetaMask
Aave
Uniswap
Compound
Cryptography
Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC)
zk-SNARKs
FAQs
How much does it cost to implement blockchain in healthcare?
As a general estimate, MVPs typically start at $50K–80K, mid-sized projects range between $100K–300K, and large-scale implementations can run from $300K–400K.
We’ll need to understand your current setup and long-term goals to provide an exact estimate. You can share these details by filling out our project cost calculator or contacting us directly.
How long does a typical blockchain project take from planning to launch?
There’s no one-size-fits-all answer here. Development timelines can differ drastically depending on the solution’s complexity and scope. Think in weeks for smart contract development and months for larger platforms like health record exchanges. We tailor each timeline to your needs and tech landscape.