Medical equipment: Difference between revisions

Line 17:

==Consumer issues==

*Right to repair - access to manuals, supplies and parts for maintenance and repair. (e.g., powered wheelchairs<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Doctorow |first=Cory |date=2024-10-24 |title=Disability Rights Are Technology Rights |url=https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2024/06/disability-rights-are-technology-rights |access-date=2025-10-07 |website=EFF}}</ref>, ventilators, etc.)

*Right to repair - access to manuals, supplies and parts for maintenance and repair. (e.g., powered wheelchairs<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Doctorow |first=Cory |date=2024-10-24 |title=Disability Rights Are Technology Rights |url=https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2024/06/disability-rights-are-technology-rights |access-date=2025-10-07 |website=EFF |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260217110909/https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2024/06/disability-rights-are-technology-rights |archive-date=17 Feb 2026}}</ref>, ventilators, etc.)

*Right to own -

**access to data from your personal device (e.g., CPAP, pacemaker, Continuous Glucose Monitor (CGM)).

**control of your devices. (e.g., insulin pumps, powered wheelchairs<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=List |first=Jenny |date=9 Mar 2024 |title=The Insurance Buys The Wheelchair, But Not The App To Run It |url=https://hackaday.com/2024/03/09/the-insurance-buys-the-wheelchair-but-not-the-app-to-run-it/ |url-status=live |access-date=2025-10-07 |website=Hack a Day}}</ref>)

**control of your devices. (e.g., insulin pumps, powered wheelchairs<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=List |first=Jenny |date=9 Mar 2024 |title=The Insurance Buys The Wheelchair, But Not The App To Run It |url=https://hackaday.com/2024/03/09/the-insurance-buys-the-wheelchair-but-not-the-app-to-run-it/ |url-status=live |access-date=2025-10-07 |website=Hack a Day |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260218174858/https://hackaday.com/2024/03/09/the-insurance-buys-the-wheelchair-but-not-the-app-to-run-it/ |archive-date=18 Feb 2026}}</ref>)

**Interoperability - proprietary supplies/consumables. (e.g., Insulin pumps, CGM)<ref name=":0" />

**Cost, inconvenience and availability of third party support.<ref name=":0" />

Line 31:

===Terumo Cardiovascular restricts equipment repairs===

[[Terumo Cardiovascular]] blocks 3rd party repair of the Advanced Perfusion System 1 Heart Lung Machine.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Maxwell |first=Thomas |date=23 Jan 2025 |title=Medical Device Company Suddenly Stops Hospitals From Fixing Machines Themselves |url=https://gizmodo.com/medical-device-company-stops-hospitals-from-fixing-machines-themselves-2000554096 |url-status=live |access-date=16 Mar 2025 |website=Gizmodo}}</ref>

[[Terumo Cardiovascular]] blocks 3rd party repair of the Advanced Perfusion System 1 Heart Lung Machine.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Maxwell |first=Thomas |date=23 Jan 2025 |title=Medical Device Company Suddenly Stops Hospitals From Fixing Machines Themselves |url=https://gizmodo.com/medical-device-company-stops-hospitals-from-fixing-machines-themselves-2000554096 |url-status=live |access-date=16 Mar 2025 |website=Gizmodo |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250723103321/https://gizmodo.com/medical-device-company-stops-hospitals-from-fixing-machines-themselves-2000554096 |archive-date=23 Jul 2025}}</ref>

===Ventilator shortage during Covid 19 pandemic===

Line 38:

===Neural stimulators===

Hundreds of thousands of people rely on neural implants.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |last=Drew |first=Liam |date=6 Dec 2022 |title=Abandoned: The human cost of neurotechnology failure |url=https://www.nature.com/immersive/d41586-022-03810-5/index.html |access-date=8 Oct 2025 |website=Nature}}</ref> Neural stimulators are used to reduce pain, to reduce trembling in Parkinson's patients, to provide substitutes for senses like hearing or sight. Implanted devices sometimes become inoperable when companies abandon them.<ref name=":3" /> Devices may need to be recalibrated to remain effective, batteries need replacing, or they need repair.<ref name=":3" />

Hundreds of thousands of people rely on neural implants.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |last=Drew |first=Liam |date=6 Dec 2022 |title=Abandoned: The human cost of neurotechnology failure |url=https://www.nature.com/immersive/d41586-022-03810-5/index.html |access-date=8 Oct 2025 |website=Nature |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20251024093159/https://www.nature.com/immersive/d41586-022-03810-5/index.html |archive-date=24 Oct 2025}}</ref> Neural stimulators are used to reduce pain, to reduce trembling in Parkinson's patients, to provide substitutes for senses like hearing or sight. Implanted devices sometimes become inoperable when companies abandon them.<ref name=":3" /> Devices may need to be recalibrated to remain effective, batteries need replacing, or they need repair.<ref name=":3" />

====Second Sight Retinal Implants====

Abandonware. Retinal implants gave patients a limited ability to perceive their environment, a substitute for sight. The company stopped supporting the devices, and later merged with another company, which abandoned users entirely.<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |last=Strickland |first=Eliza |last2=Harris |first2=Mark |date=15 Feb 2022 |title=Their Bionic Eyes Are Now Obsolete and Unsupported |url=https://spectrum.ieee.org/bionic-eye-obsolete |access-date=8 Oct 2025 |website=IEEE Spectrum}}</ref> Users could not get device put into MRI safe mode to have brain scans<ref name=":4" />. Users lost support without warning.<ref name=":4" /> Nonfunctional implants can still cause problems like crippling vertigo.<ref name=":2" />

Abandonware. Retinal implants gave patients a limited ability to perceive their environment, a substitute for sight. The company stopped supporting the devices, and later merged with another company, which abandoned users entirely.<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |last=Strickland |first=Eliza |last2=Harris |first2=Mark |date=15 Feb 2022 |title=Their Bionic Eyes Are Now Obsolete and Unsupported |url=https://spectrum.ieee.org/bionic-eye-obsolete |access-date=8 Oct 2025 |website=IEEE Spectrum |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260201073706/https://spectrum.ieee.org/bionic-eye-obsolete |archive-date=1 Feb 2026}}</ref> Users could not get device put into MRI safe mode to have brain scans<ref name=":4" />. Users lost support without warning.<ref name=":4" /> Nonfunctional implants can still cause problems like crippling vertigo.<ref name=":2" />

===Pacemakers===

Line 52:

===Powered wheelchairs===

These devices are essential for millions of people to work, interact with society, or simply move around their homes. In the United States, two companies control the market. Medicare only covers indoor wheelchairs, which are often not built robustly, break down frequently, and companies make them hard and expensive to service or repair. Even simple adjustments often require a service call. This locks people people out of their lives and puts them at risk for health effects of being bedridden. Some US states, such as Colorado have enacted right to repair legislation in this area.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Doctorow |first=Cory |date=2022-06-07 |title=When DRM Comes For Your Wheelchair |url=https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2022/06/when-drm-comes-your-wheelchair |access-date=2025-10-06 |website=EFF}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Hawryluk |first=Markian |date=2 Jun 2022 |title=Despite a First-Ever ‘Right-to-Repair’ Law, There’s No Easy Fix for Wheelchair Users |url=https://kffhealthnews.org/news/article/power-wheelchair-users-right-to-repair-law-no-easy-fix/ |access-date=8 Oct 2025 |website=KFF Health News}}</ref>

These devices are essential for millions of people to work, interact with society, or simply move around their homes. In the United States, two companies control the market. Medicare only covers indoor wheelchairs, which are often not built robustly, break down frequently, and companies make them hard and expensive to service or repair. Even simple adjustments often require a service call. This locks people people out of their lives and puts them at risk for health effects of being bedridden. Some US states, such as Colorado have enacted right to repair legislation in this area.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Doctorow |first=Cory |date=2022-06-07 |title=When DRM Comes For Your Wheelchair |url=https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2022/06/when-drm-comes-your-wheelchair |access-date=2025-10-06 |website=EFF |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250914141305/https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2022/06/when-drm-comes-your-wheelchair |archive-date=14 Sep 2025}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Hawryluk |first=Markian |date=2 Jun 2022 |title=Despite a First-Ever ‘Right-to-Repair’ Law, There’s No Easy Fix for Wheelchair Users |url=https://kffhealthnews.org/news/article/power-wheelchair-users-right-to-repair-law-no-easy-fix/ |access-date=8 Oct 2025 |website=KFF Health News |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260112105050/https://kffhealthnews.org/news/article/power-wheelchair-users-right-to-repair-law-no-easy-fix/ |archive-date=12 Jan 2026}}</ref>

===Software===

A study was conducted in Cambridge in relation to software-dependent medical devices and how they would benefit from right to repair.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lindgren |first=Lars |last2=Kesselheim |first2=Aaron S. |last3=Kramer |first3=Daniel B. |date=8 Mar 2023 |title=The Right to Repair Software-Dependent Medical Devices |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-law-medicine-and-ethics/article/abs/right-to-repair-softwaredependent-medical-devices/F08B93DD92327BAA34D4D67476A424C9 |url-status=live |access-date=16 Mar 2025 |website=Cambridge University Press}}</ref>

A study was conducted in Cambridge in relation to software-dependent medical devices and how they would benefit from right to repair.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lindgren |first=Lars |last2=Kesselheim |first2=Aaron S. |last3=Kramer |first3=Daniel B. |date=8 Mar 2023 |title=The Right to Repair Software-Dependent Medical Devices |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-law-medicine-and-ethics/article/abs/right-to-repair-softwaredependent-medical-devices/F08B93DD92327BAA34D4D67476A424C9 |url-status=live |access-date=16 Mar 2025 |website=Cambridge University Press |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250709090406/https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-law-medicine-and-ethics/article/abs/right-to-repair-softwaredependent-medical-devices/F08B93DD92327BAA34D4D67476A424C9 |archive-date=9 Jul 2025}}</ref>

==References==

[[Category:Medical industry]]

@@ Line 17: / Line 17: @@
 ==Consumer issues==
-*Right to repair - access to manuals, supplies and parts for maintenance and repair.  (e.g., powered wheelchairs<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Doctorow |first=Cory |date=2024-10-24 |title=Disability Rights Are Technology Rights |url=https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2024/06/disability-rights-are-technology-rights |access-date=2025-10-07 |website=EFF}}</ref>, ventilators, etc.)
+*Right to repair - access to manuals, supplies and parts for maintenance and repair.  (e.g., powered wheelchairs<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Doctorow |first=Cory |date=2024-10-24 |title=Disability Rights Are Technology Rights |url=https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2024/06/disability-rights-are-technology-rights |access-date=2025-10-07 |website=EFF |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260217110909/https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2024/06/disability-rights-are-technology-rights |archive-date=17 Feb 2026}}</ref>, ventilators, etc.)
 *Right to own -
 **access to data from your personal device (e.g., CPAP, pacemaker, Continuous Glucose Monitor (CGM)).
-**control of your devices.  (e.g., insulin pumps, powered wheelchairs<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=List |first=Jenny |date=9 Mar 2024 |title=The Insurance Buys The Wheelchair, But Not The App To Run It |url=https://hackaday.com/2024/03/09/the-insurance-buys-the-wheelchair-but-not-the-app-to-run-it/ |url-status=live |access-date=2025-10-07 |website=Hack a Day}}</ref>)
+**control of your devices.  (e.g., insulin pumps, powered wheelchairs<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=List |first=Jenny |date=9 Mar 2024 |title=The Insurance Buys The Wheelchair, But Not The App To Run It |url=https://hackaday.com/2024/03/09/the-insurance-buys-the-wheelchair-but-not-the-app-to-run-it/ |url-status=live |access-date=2025-10-07 |website=Hack a Day |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260218174858/https://hackaday.com/2024/03/09/the-insurance-buys-the-wheelchair-but-not-the-app-to-run-it/ |archive-date=18 Feb 2026}}</ref>)
 **Interoperability - proprietary supplies/consumables. (e.g., Insulin pumps, CGM)<ref name=":0" />
 **Cost, inconvenience and availability of third party support.<ref name=":0" />
@@ Line 31: / Line 31: @@
 ===Terumo Cardiovascular restricts equipment repairs===
-[[Terumo Cardiovascular]] blocks 3rd party repair of the Advanced Perfusion System 1 Heart Lung Machine.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Maxwell |first=Thomas |date=23 Jan 2025 |title=Medical Device Company Suddenly Stops Hospitals From Fixing Machines Themselves |url=https://gizmodo.com/medical-device-company-stops-hospitals-from-fixing-machines-themselves-2000554096 |url-status=live |access-date=16 Mar 2025 |website=Gizmodo}}</ref>
+[[Terumo Cardiovascular]] blocks 3rd party repair of the Advanced Perfusion System 1 Heart Lung Machine.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Maxwell |first=Thomas |date=23 Jan 2025 |title=Medical Device Company Suddenly Stops Hospitals From Fixing Machines Themselves |url=https://gizmodo.com/medical-device-company-stops-hospitals-from-fixing-machines-themselves-2000554096 |url-status=live |access-date=16 Mar 2025 |website=Gizmodo |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250723103321/https://gizmodo.com/medical-device-company-stops-hospitals-from-fixing-machines-themselves-2000554096 |archive-date=23 Jul 2025}}</ref>
 ===Ventilator shortage during Covid 19 pandemic===
@@ Line 38: / Line 38: @@
 ===Neural stimulators===
-Hundreds of thousands of people rely on neural implants.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |last=Drew |first=Liam |date=6 Dec 2022 |title=Abandoned: The human cost of neurotechnology failure |url=https://www.nature.com/immersive/d41586-022-03810-5/index.html |access-date=8 Oct 2025 |website=Nature}}</ref>  Neural stimulators are used to reduce pain, to reduce trembling in Parkinson's patients, to provide substitutes for senses like hearing or sight. Implanted devices sometimes become inoperable when companies abandon them.<ref name=":3" />  Devices may need to be recalibrated to remain effective, batteries need replacing, or they need repair.<ref name=":3" />
+Hundreds of thousands of people rely on neural implants.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |last=Drew |first=Liam |date=6 Dec 2022 |title=Abandoned: The human cost of neurotechnology failure |url=https://www.nature.com/immersive/d41586-022-03810-5/index.html |access-date=8 Oct 2025 |website=Nature |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20251024093159/https://www.nature.com/immersive/d41586-022-03810-5/index.html |archive-date=24 Oct 2025}}</ref>  Neural stimulators are used to reduce pain, to reduce trembling in Parkinson's patients, to provide substitutes for senses like hearing or sight. Implanted devices sometimes become inoperable when companies abandon them.<ref name=":3" />  Devices may need to be recalibrated to remain effective, batteries need replacing, or they need repair.<ref name=":3" />
 ====Second Sight Retinal Implants====
-Abandonware.  Retinal implants gave patients a limited ability to perceive their environment, a substitute for sight.  The company stopped supporting the devices, and later merged with another company, which abandoned users entirely.<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |last=Strickland |first=Eliza |last2=Harris |first2=Mark |date=15 Feb 2022 |title=Their Bionic Eyes Are Now Obsolete and Unsupported |url=https://spectrum.ieee.org/bionic-eye-obsolete |access-date=8 Oct 2025 |website=IEEE Spectrum}}</ref>  Users could not get device put into MRI safe mode to have brain scans<ref name=":4" />.  Users lost support without warning.<ref name=":4" />  Nonfunctional implants can still cause problems like crippling vertigo.<ref name=":2" />
+Abandonware.  Retinal implants gave patients a limited ability to perceive their environment, a substitute for sight.  The company stopped supporting the devices, and later merged with another company, which abandoned users entirely.<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |last=Strickland |first=Eliza |last2=Harris |first2=Mark |date=15 Feb 2022 |title=Their Bionic Eyes Are Now Obsolete and Unsupported |url=https://spectrum.ieee.org/bionic-eye-obsolete |access-date=8 Oct 2025 |website=IEEE Spectrum |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260201073706/https://spectrum.ieee.org/bionic-eye-obsolete |archive-date=1 Feb 2026}}</ref>  Users could not get device put into MRI safe mode to have brain scans<ref name=":4" />.  Users lost support without warning.<ref name=":4" />  Nonfunctional implants can still cause problems like crippling vertigo.<ref name=":2" />
 ===Pacemakers===
@@ Line 52: / Line 52: @@
 ===Powered wheelchairs===
-These devices are essential for millions of people to work, interact with society, or simply move around their homes.  In the United States, two companies control the market.  Medicare only covers indoor wheelchairs, which are often not built robustly, break down frequently, and companies make them hard and expensive to service or repair.  Even simple adjustments often require a service call. This locks people people out of their lives and puts them at risk for health effects of being bedridden.  Some US states, such as Colorado have enacted right to repair legislation in this area.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Doctorow |first=Cory |date=2022-06-07 |title=When DRM Comes For Your Wheelchair |url=https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2022/06/when-drm-comes-your-wheelchair |access-date=2025-10-06 |website=EFF}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Hawryluk |first=Markian |date=2 Jun 2022 |title=Despite a First-Ever ‘Right-to-Repair’ Law, There’s No Easy Fix for Wheelchair Users |url=https://kffhealthnews.org/news/article/power-wheelchair-users-right-to-repair-law-no-easy-fix/ |access-date=8 Oct 2025 |website=KFF Health News}}</ref>
+These devices are essential for millions of people to work, interact with society, or simply move around their homes.  In the United States, two companies control the market.  Medicare only covers indoor wheelchairs, which are often not built robustly, break down frequently, and companies make them hard and expensive to service or repair.  Even simple adjustments often require a service call. This locks people people out of their lives and puts them at risk for health effects of being bedridden.  Some US states, such as Colorado have enacted right to repair legislation in this area.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Doctorow |first=Cory |date=2022-06-07 |title=When DRM Comes For Your Wheelchair |url=https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2022/06/when-drm-comes-your-wheelchair |access-date=2025-10-06 |website=EFF |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250914141305/https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2022/06/when-drm-comes-your-wheelchair |archive-date=14 Sep 2025}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Hawryluk |first=Markian |date=2 Jun 2022 |title=Despite a First-Ever ‘Right-to-Repair’ Law, There’s No Easy Fix for Wheelchair Users |url=https://kffhealthnews.org/news/article/power-wheelchair-users-right-to-repair-law-no-easy-fix/ |access-date=8 Oct 2025 |website=KFF Health News |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260112105050/https://kffhealthnews.org/news/article/power-wheelchair-users-right-to-repair-law-no-easy-fix/ |archive-date=12 Jan 2026}}</ref>
 ===Software===
-A study was conducted in Cambridge in relation to software-dependent medical devices and how they would benefit from right to repair.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lindgren |first=Lars |last2=Kesselheim |first2=Aaron S. |last3=Kramer |first3=Daniel B. |date=8 Mar 2023 |title=The Right to Repair Software-Dependent Medical Devices |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-law-medicine-and-ethics/article/abs/right-to-repair-softwaredependent-medical-devices/F08B93DD92327BAA34D4D67476A424C9 |url-status=live |access-date=16 Mar 2025 |website=Cambridge University Press}}</ref>
+A study was conducted in Cambridge in relation to software-dependent medical devices and how they would benefit from right to repair.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lindgren |first=Lars |last2=Kesselheim |first2=Aaron S. |last3=Kramer |first3=Daniel B. |date=8 Mar 2023 |title=The Right to Repair Software-Dependent Medical Devices |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-law-medicine-and-ethics/article/abs/right-to-repair-softwaredependent-medical-devices/F08B93DD92327BAA34D4D67476A424C9 |url-status=live |access-date=16 Mar 2025 |website=Cambridge University Press |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250709090406/https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-law-medicine-and-ethics/article/abs/right-to-repair-softwaredependent-medical-devices/F08B93DD92327BAA34D4D67476A424C9 |archive-date=9 Jul 2025}}</ref>
 ==References==
 <references />
 [[Category:Medical industry]]