Apple joins FDA pilot program allowing it to skip some rules for health products
Apple has been picked as one of nine companies for a pilot program by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which which will let the firms avoid regulations that can slow the development of health-related products.
Under the scheme, companies will be able to get pre-clearance so long as they subject their software and facilities to scrutiny, Bloomberg reported. With this in hand, the formal approval process may become shortened or non-existent.
Over a hundred companies expressed interest in the pilot, the FDA said. Other successful applicants included Fitbit, Samsung, Roche, Johnson & Johnson, and Alphabet's Verily Life Sciences.
In the case of Apple, the FDA program could be applied to things like the Apple Heart Study, but also future versions of the Apple Watch. Apple has allegedly been experimenting with non-invasive glucose detection, something that would require FDA vetting for a shipping product.
Going through the FDA has previously posed risks for the company, not just because of its time-consuming nature but the likelhood of exposing products to competitors long before they launch. While secrets are still likely to slip out, rapid approval could make it possible for Apple to ship medical-related advances before competitors can catch up.
The Apple Watch Series 3 shipped on Sept. 22 with upgrades like LTE, but no radically different health technology.
Under the scheme, companies will be able to get pre-clearance so long as they subject their software and facilities to scrutiny, Bloomberg reported. With this in hand, the formal approval process may become shortened or non-existent.
Over a hundred companies expressed interest in the pilot, the FDA said. Other successful applicants included Fitbit, Samsung, Roche, Johnson & Johnson, and Alphabet's Verily Life Sciences.
In the case of Apple, the FDA program could be applied to things like the Apple Heart Study, but also future versions of the Apple Watch. Apple has allegedly been experimenting with non-invasive glucose detection, something that would require FDA vetting for a shipping product.
Going through the FDA has previously posed risks for the company, not just because of its time-consuming nature but the likelhood of exposing products to competitors long before they launch. While secrets are still likely to slip out, rapid approval could make it possible for Apple to ship medical-related advances before competitors can catch up.
The Apple Watch Series 3 shipped on Sept. 22 with upgrades like LTE, but no radically different health technology.
Comments
It all depends on how you want to look at it...
Also we can trust Apple more than the FDA at this point.
Obama and Clinton allowed it, too. Don’t get political.
FDA is better than equivalent agencies around the world. I speak from experience.
There's corn and soy in lots of things because those crops are usually economically grown (profitable) in large volumes, temperature-hardy, energy-dense, storable, transportable, and blend well (palatable) with other proteins in meals of most cuisines, so they make for safe and reliable food sources. You can easily avoid or minimize your exposure to these foods if you don't like them, or are one of the rare people that can't tolerate one of them. If you're talking about GMO or HFCS, those are entirely different discussions, in which hysteria seems to be predominant.
Read: subsidies
I’m most concerned about xenoestrogens, myself. Our water supply is in serious need of a rejiggering. Did you know that there are plastic fibers in 80% of US water?