Why Can't We Plug Our Brain Into Our Computers?
from the blame-the-bureaucrats dept
Over at Salon, they're taking a look at the world of neuroprostheses - "medical devices that connect directly to the human brain, spinal cord or nerves." It turns out that there's been quite a lot of work done in the field, from the fairly mundane to the much more advanced. However, the writer suggests two major hurdles in making most of these devices mainstream. The FDA's costly approval process makes it so that almost all of these devices would be financially unsound investments. Second, Medicare refuses to reimburse patients who get such devices a reasonable amount. Of course, some might take the point of view that when you're messing with such things, perhaps it makes sense to have a careful review process. However, the article makes a convincing argument that (at least) their should be some middle ground to encourage these products to move forward.
Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.
Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.
While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.
–The Techdirt Team
