Learn how to have your iPhone and Apple Watch automatically share your Medical ID with emergency services, giving them useful information about you to ensure better and speedier help.
Your iPhone and Apple Watch can automatically share Medical ID information when you make an emergency call.
Emergency access to your Medical ID data lets first responders provide better care by not wasting time obtaining crucial information such as allergies, blood type, medical conditions, language, and more. When they have this information, it can speed up the process of getting the care you need.
Note: This feature is only available in the US and Canada.
Also see: 15 built-in wellness features to keep track of your health on iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch
How to share your Medical ID during 911 calls
- Open the Health app on your iPhone.
- Tap your account profile image in the top-right corner.
- Select Medical ID.
- Tap the Edit button in the upper right corner.
- Turn on the Share During Emergency Call switch.
Now, when you call or text emergency services in your area, your iPhone or Apple Watch will automatically share both your location and encrypted Medical ID info.
If it doesn’t work, make sure Location Services on your iPhone are enabled for the Emergency Calls & SOS option in Settings > Privacy & Security > Location Services > System Services.
When sharing your location with health authorities, you’ll get a reminder to stop every four hours for 24 hours. You can also stop automatic location sharing with first responders at any time by tapping the iOS status bar and choosing Stop Sharing Emergency Location.
Show your Medical ID on the Lock Screen
In addition to sharing your Medical ID with emergency services, you should also turn on the “Show When Locked” switch. This will ensure your Medical ID information can be accessed from the Lock Screen without needing your device passcode. This ensures first responders and other people who are around you can see your emergency contacts and other information to provide help.
About Enhanced Emergency Data
Emergency access to Medical ID data requires location access because the feature needs your current geographical location in order to forward encrypted Medical ID information to a local partner for delivery to the emergency services in your area.
Apple cautions that automatic sharing of Medical ID information during emergency calls only works if Enhanced Emergency Data services are available in your area. Enhanced Emergency Data uses Apple’s Hybridized Emergency Location technology, for sending high-integrity location data to 911 centers when making emergency calls.
In other words, Enhanced Emergency Data was designed so that first responders and health authorities could pinpoint your exact location in case of an emergency. At the time of this writing, Enhanced Emergency Data was limited to carriers and first responders in the US and Canada.
Extra info: European countries have Advanced Mobile Location which works in a similar fashion, by automatically sending accurate geographical location when making a call to the emergency services within the European Union.
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