Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
FDA Issues Warning That Medtronic Insulin Pumps Are Vulnerable To Potential Hacks
The US Food and Drug Administration issued a warning on Thursday about possible risk of hacking for some diabetes patients' insulin pumps. Certain insulin pumps from Medtronic MiniMed have been recalled due to potential cybersecurity risks and it's recommended for people who use those insulin pumps to switch to different models, according to the FDA. (Howard, 6/27)
Medtronic began notifying patients about the issue Thursday, saying a hacker could potentially connect wirelessly to a nearby insulin pump to change settings or control insulin delivery. But the company said the likelihood of such a danger from hackers is small, and that the unauthorized person would need to be in fairly close proximity to the person with the insulin pump鈥攕everal feet away, or potentially at a house next door, depending on the hacking equipment being used. (Burton, 6/27)
"While we are not aware of patients who may have been harmed by this particular cybersecurity vulnerability, the risk of patient harm if such a vulnerability were left unaddressed is significant," Suzanne Schwartz, MD, deputy director of the Office of Strategic Partnerships and Technology Innovation and acting division director for All Hazards Response, Science and Strategic Partnerships in the FDA's Center for Devices and Radiological Health, said in a statement. (Brooks, 6/27)
Insulin is a self-administered drug that can be acutely harmful if given in too large a dose. An insulin pump is a central component of an overall system used to deliver regular doses of manufactured insulin in patients whose bodies don't naturally produce enough of the hormone to break down sugars in their blood. Such pumps can communicate wirelessly with external devices to get real-time glucose measurements or transmit patient data. (Carlson, 6/27)
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warned patients and health care providers using certain types of insulin pumps of cyber threats involving the devices, with the pumps recalled due to vulnerabilities that could lead to聽negative health consequences for users.聽Security researchers found cyber vulnerabilities in certain types of Medtronic MiniMed insulin pumps聽that could enable unauthorized users to聽connect wirelessly to聽one of these pumps if they are聽nearby to alter or stop the amount of insulin delivered to a patient. (Miller, 6/27)
