Current e-prescription disruption: What happened and who is affected?

Since Wednesday morning (August 6, 2025), there have been disruptions to e-prescriptions across Germany: Both doctor's offices and pharmacies are reporting that electronic prescriptions cannot be created or redeemed. This is reported by the Society for Telematic Applications of the Health Card GmbH, or Gematik for short.

According to Gematik, Medisign's SMC-B and HBA cards are currently disrupted – affecting both issuing by doctors and redemption in pharmacies.

The reading of health card data, the sending of messages via KIM and the use of the electronic patient record (ePA) are also affected.

Gematik has begun analyzing the error – no cause for the failure has been identified yet.

On its website, Gematik lists a comprehensive description of the processes affected by the disruption.

The current disruption means significant restrictions for practices, pharmacies, and patients. To ensure the smoothest possible care, professional associations and Gematik recommend the following measures:

• Restart the connector : In many cases, restarting the hardware components (e.g., the connector or card terminal) can help restore the connection to the telematics infrastructure. Gematik expressly recommends this step as the first step in the event of persistent disruptions.
• Issuing a paper prescription : If issuing an e-prescription is not possible, doctors can use the classic Form 16 (paper prescription). This can be redeemed at pharmacies as usual.
• Use alternative procedures : In some cases, patients can deposit their electronic health card (eGK) at pharmacies. The prescription will then be redeemed retroactively as soon as the connection to the TI is available again.
• Check KIM services : If you are unable to send or receive messages via the KIM service, you should use alternative communication channels with practices or pharmacies – e.g., by telephone or fax.
• Actively inform patients : Doctors and pharmacists should inform affected patients about the current situation as early as possible to avoid misunderstandings and waiting times.
• Monitor TI status : Gematik regularly provides information on the current status of the disruption as well as possible solutions and progress in troubleshooting on its TI status portal .

Failures and disruptions in the telematics infrastructure and the e-prescription system occur repeatedly. Reasons for this include:

• Complex technology and many components involved (hardware, software, cards, networks),
• Dependence on secure connections between doctor’s offices, pharmacies and central servers,
• Updates or changes in the infrastructure,
• occasional problems with card manufacturers (such as Medisign) or software providers.

Such outages can vary in severity from region to region. Gematik is striving to provide solutions quickly. Nevertheless, a certain susceptibility to errors has been part of the routine when introducing digital health applications.

Gematik GmbH (Gesellschaft für Telematikanwendungen der Gesundheitskarte mbH) is the central organization for the digitalization of the healthcare system in Germany. Founded in 2005, it is primarily responsible for the introduction, development, and coordination of the telematics infrastructure (TI)—the digital backbone of the German healthcare system.

As such, the company is also responsible for the introduction of digital applications such as the electronic prescription (e-prescription) or the electronic patient record (ePA).

The e-prescription was officially introduced in Germany on January 1, 2022. Since then, the rollout has been gradual. Initially, use was voluntary, but over the course of 2022 and 2023, many health insurance companies and physicians implemented electronic prescription issuance.

Since July 1, 2023, e-prescriptions have been mandatory for those with statutory health insurance, subject to transitional provisions. The goal is to ensure comprehensive and secure digital prescription of medicines.