# Healthcare API platform: what it includes and how to choose > The layers of a healthcare API platform, build vs cloud FHIR store vs platform, and questions to ask any vendor — answered for Anpheros: consent, EU data, FHIR R4, pricing. Source: https://developers.anpheros.com/guides/healthcare-api-platform **A healthcare API platform is a managed service that gives software teams everything around patient data in one place: a standard clinical data store (usually HL7 FHIR), APIs and SDKs to read and write it, identity and patient consent, and the trust features regulated health data needs — provenance, version history and access logs.** Anpheros is a healthcare API platform hosted in the European Union: one FHIR R4 record per patient, a FHIR API and a simpler REST API, OAuth 2.1 consent the patient controls, webhooks, lab import and a free sandbox with synthetic patients. This page explains what such a platform should include, how it compares with building the layer yourself or using a cloud FHIR store, and the questions to ask any vendor. ## What a healthcare API platform includes | Layer | What it does | In Anpheros | |---|---|---| | APIs and SDKs | Let your code read and write records | FHIR R4 at `/fhir/R4`, REST at `/v1`, TypeScript and Dart SDKs, OpenAPI, an MCP server for AI agents | | Identity and consent | Decide who may see which patient | API keys for your servers; OAuth 2.1 + PKCE with SMART on FHIR scopes for patients; revocation on the next request | | Data services | Turn messy inputs into clean records | HL7 v2 and CSV lab import, documents, terminology lookup (a bundled LOINC and ATC subset, symptom concepts), IPS summary, AI context | | Trust layer | Make every value accountable | Provenance on every write, every version kept, an access log the patient can read | | Clinical data store | Keep the record | One HL7 FHIR R4 record per patient, 26 resource types, EU data residency | ## Build it yourself, use a cloud FHIR store, or use a platform None of these is wrong. A self-built stack gives full control of the data model; a cloud FHIR store fits teams that must keep everything inside one cloud account and will build consent, audit and integrations themselves; a healthcare API platform fits teams that want those parts done so the product is their work. The [FHIR server comparison](https://developers.anpheros.com/guides/fhir-server-comparison) goes product category by product category. ## Questions to ask any healthcare API platform | Question | Anpheros answer | |---|---| | Where is the data stored? | European Union: Google Cloud `europe-west4` (Netherlands) for the service and databases | | Who authorises access? | Your organisation for the patients you create (API key); the patient for everyone else (OAuth consent) | | Which standard, and is it tested? | FHIR R4 (4.0.1); SMART App Launch STU2 standalone-launch group of Inferno: 22 of 22 tests passed (28 September 2026) | | Can we leave with our data? | `Patient/{id}/$everything` returns the whole record as FHIR | | Are reads logged? | Yes, reads and writes, and the patient can see them | | Can we test for free? | Yes: a self-service sandbox with 30 synthetic patients per project | | What does production cost? | From €49 a month for 2,500 stored patients, first month free; prices exclude VAT | | What is not there yet? | EHR launch, Bulk Data export and `system/` scopes; the platform is in private beta without a contractual SLA | ## Start in two minutes ```bash # 1. Sign in at https://platform.anpheros.com/dashboard/ with Google and press "Get a sandbox key" export ANPHEROS_KEY=sk_test_... # 2. Read the synthetic patients over the simple REST API… curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $ANPHEROS_KEY" "https://platform.anpheros.com/v1/patients?limit=3" # 3. …or the same data as FHIR R4 curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $ANPHEROS_KEY" "https://platform.anpheros.com/fhir/R4/Patient?_count=3" ``` ## Frequently asked questions ### What is a healthcare API platform? A managed service that combines a standard clinical data store, APIs and SDKs, identity and patient consent, and audit features, so teams building health software do not have to build that layer themselves. ### How is a healthcare API platform different from a healthcare API? A healthcare API is the interface. A platform also runs everything behind it — storage, consent, provenance, logs, sandbox, SDKs and integrations — and is responsible for operating it. ### Is Anpheros a healthcare API platform? Yes. Anpheros provides a FHIR R4 data store with one record per patient, a FHIR API and a REST API, OAuth 2.1 consent controlled by the patient, provenance and access logs, webhooks, lab import and SDKs, hosted in the European Union. ### How much does a healthcare API platform cost? Pricing models differ: usage-based (requests and storage) for cloud FHIR stores, per plan for platforms. Anpheros is free in the sandbox; production plans start at €49 a month for 2,500 stored patients. ### Can a healthcare API platform be used for AI applications? Yes, if it labels where data comes from and respects consent. Anpheros builds a source-labelled patient context for any model with `POST /v1/context` and offers an MCP server for AI agents; it does not host AI models. ## Related - [Healthcare API](https://developers.anpheros.com/guides/healthcare-api): what a healthcare API is and the Anpheros API at a glance - [FHIR platform](https://developers.anpheros.com/guides/fhir): the FHIR R4 implementation in detail - [How Anpheros compares with other FHIR servers](https://developers.anpheros.com/guides/fhir-server-comparison) - [Patient consent platform for health apps](https://developers.anpheros.com/guides/patient-consent-platform) - [Security, privacy and data residency](https://developers.anpheros.com/guides/security) - [Pricing](https://developers.anpheros.com/guides/pricing) - [FHIR proof of concept in a free sandbox](https://developers.anpheros.com/guides/fhir-proof-of-concept)