Joint replacements are the #1 expenditure of Medicare. The process of approving these medical devices is flawed according to the Institute of Medicine. It is time for patients' voices to be heard as stakeholders and for public support for increased medical device industry accountability and heightened protections for patients. Post-market registry. Product warranty. Patient/consumer stakeholder equity. Rescind industry pre-emptions/entitlements. All clinical trials must report all data.
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Friday, January 20, 2012

You can help reduce unsafe and ineffective implanted medical devices.

Medical Devices: Consumers Union Safe Patient Project

Medical Devices should not be ticking time bombs!
We shouldn’t be used as guinea pigs when it comes to something as serious as a medical implant. Yet everyday, Americans are finding out that the medical device they are using to improve their health may actually cause serious harm, permanent disability or death!
Because of intense lobbying from the medical device industry, more than 90 percent of devices do not have to undergo testing on humans before they are sold to, or implanted in, us. That means heart valves and other high-risk devices can receive less scrutiny and testing than a drug for an upset stomach. 
Further, implants are not tracked universally. That means there's no way to notify patients that they may have a defective product that should be removed. If you don’t think this makes sense, let your members of Congress know. They’re writing legislation right now that will decide how safe medical devices must be. 
Tell them you want safety standards for most medical devices to be brought in line with prescription drugs. Just fill in the form below, adjust the letter with your own comments, and our system will automatically direct your message to your own Representative and Senators based on your address.

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