We wrote last week about the FDA taking comments on its regulations regarding wearable health technology. The excellent Politico weighs in today with a story about how Congress is being pressed to limit — by law — what the FDA is allowed to regulate.
Politico traces some of the money, noting that Intel spent $1.5 million last year lobbying on “telehealth wearables, remote patient monitoring, the use of patient-generated data for meaningful use Stage 3 and other health IT issues.” Apple spent $1.5 million last year on lobbying, too, although not all of it, presumably, in the health sector.
The legislative players here appear to be Rep. Martha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), and Sen. Michael Benet (D-Colo.).
If you’re in the business of connected medtech — or a concerned consumer of connected medtech, you’d best be following this closely.