The FCC is seeking comments by late September from companies on whether it should establish a medical data service (MEDS) to support wireless telemetry applications for implanted devices and other external sensors that communicate non-time-sensitive data, such as blood oxygen levels, blood glucose levels and blood pressure. This proceeding will greatly impact:

• Manufacturers of implanted devices and other external sensors that communicate non-time-sensitive data such as oxygen levels, glucose levels and blood pressure (“Non-Time Sensitive Devices”).
• Manufacturers of devices, such as cardiac pacemakers, that communicate time sensitive data and operate in the MICS spectrum (“Time Sensitive Devices”).
• Hospitals, assisted living facilities and physicians.

Those parties supporting the establishment of MEDS claim that it will greatly benefit manufacturers of Non-Time Sensitive Devices, as it will, among other things, make it less costly to produce such devices. They further claim that manufacturers of Time Sensitive Devices will also benefit, because without MEDS manufacturers of Non-Time Sensitive Devices will seek to operate in a manner that could cause interference to the operation of Time Sensitive Devices.

Finally, they claim that hospitals, assisted living facilities and physicians will greatly benefit from the establishment of MEDS as it will result in new, less expensive, more effective products that they can use (e.g., it would result in products that provide lower cost medical data collection and therapy for hospitals and other facilities).

For more information, contact:

Alan Fishel 
202-857-6450
fishel.alan@arentfox.com

Jeffrey Rummel
202-715-8479
rummel.jeffrey@arentfox.com