This is not a technical post, but it still falls under my blog's motto: "Trying to make things clearer"
What is the Concern?
I had a discussion the other day regarding the "PATIENT PROTECTION AND AFFORDABLE CARE ACT" (also known as "ObamaCare"). The conversation revolved around the other person's sincere concern about the future of this country, especially regarding the contents of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and the seeming requirement that all participants would have an implanted device. This implanted device would be used to uniquely identify that participant and, maybe, to store their medical information. As I normally do when I do not have enough information, I presented a weak argument which basically said "I don't see how the government could hide such a thing".
Then, I had some spare time (well, not really... I really should be in bed) to research the issue. I found a plethora of search results warning of the end times. Hundreds of results stating that "Obama Care" was an integral part of the Biblical end times that is found with Revelations. The fear and concern that follows such statements are obvious to those of us who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. The resulting fear will certainly begin to cause distrust for our government.
What is my Focus?
This post is purely focused on the rumors about the ACA requiring all participants to have an implantable device. One such rumor mill warning of the requirement for an implantable device is http://beforeitsnews.com/politics/2012/07/hidden-obamacare-secret-rfid-chip-implants-mandatory-for-all-by-march-23-2013-2423141.html.
Cause for Concern?
Is there cause for concern? I state, emphatically, that there is NO cause for concern. Why? Because the language in question only existed in HR3200, which never passed (HR4872 was the final bill passed into law, I believe). Look it up for yourselves, folks. I am not going to add to, or take away from, what HR3200 says. Search for "SEC. 2561. NATIONAL MEDICAL DEVICE REGISTRY" within that bill and you will find what the fuss is all about. BUT.... and that should be a huge "BUT".... READ THE CONTEXT OF WHAT THE BILL SAYS!!!!
Context? What is that?
Before I tackle my "context" concern, let me first say:
In our busy lives, we are often fed information that is relevant to us. And we typically settle upon certain sources of news and information, especially when the view points of those sources are aligned with our own beliefs. That is fine, except when we accept everything that comes from that source without verifying.
Back to "context". As a strong believer in the God of the Bible and His son, Jesus Christ, I learned a long time ago that context is ESSENTIAL in having a reasonable and valuable conversation about any portion of the Bible. When you are discussing a single verse, the general guidance is to read the 20 versus before and the 20 verses after the verse in order to firmly establish the context of that single verse.
Well, the same context argument goes for something as large as the ACA.
(Remember: HR3200 was NEVER put into law. HR4872 WAS put into law. HR4872 does not contain any language regarding the medical devices that are the subject of the rumors)
Here is what I want you to do: 1) Open the link for HR3200 and search for the text that I mentioned earlier. 2) Once you are at that section, read the entire section. 3) Read the following text that is my take on this section. 4) Decide for yourself if the United States Government was really planning to get into the business of tracking you and your health records by implanting a device in you.
Will I call you ignorant and stupid if you don't agree with me? No. But, I will give you a really strange look if you don't agree with me.
So, America, here is what I have learned:
Let me say that I am a well established software engineer. My job is to read very complicated documents and translate those documents into a meaningful software system which gives life to those complicated documents. I have worked for one of the largest international law firms in the world: Hunton & Williams. I have worked for one of the largest financial services companies in the world: JP Morgan Chase. I have worked on some extensive and expansive Department Of Defense projects. So, believe me, complicated things don't scare me.
HR3200, section "SEC. 2561. NATIONAL MEDICAL DEVICE REGISTRY", does NOT (I repeat: DOES NOT) describe implantable devices that are intended for recording information about a patient. HR3200, Section 2561, was not the beginnings of a government conspiracy to open the door for the anti-christ, nor does it have anything to do with mark of the beast. Believe me... If you think that, then you are completely missing the real intent of this section.
Section 2561 establishes a national device registry of all medical devices that are used in the treatment of injury and/or for sustaining of life. The registry would have existed in order to analyze the safety and medical outcomes of the usage of medical devices in the treatment of a health condition. The registry would have tracked devices that is currently, or has previously, been used to treat a patient. The registry would have allowed for the safety record of those devices to be known. The registry would have been made available to the public (excluding any patient-specific information), much like the "sex offenders" list that a lot of people keep an eye on.
Sub-section 4 of Section 2561 sheds even more light as to why this registry was in the original HR3200 bill. There, you will read that the establishment and operation of the registry would have required that health device manufactures provide details of each medical device, such as type, model, and serial number (Sec 2561.4.A); provide a means to link the device to the ultimate health outcome of the device's usage for a patient (Sec 2561.4.B); could have required device manufacturers to submit details of a given device's safety, effectiveness, and risks of use (Sec 2561.4.C); would have established requirements for routine reports to bring to light concerns about the safety of a given device, based on trends that may come to light (Sec 2561.4.D); and, finally, would have provided a means for the public to learn the real safety of these devices (Sec 2561.4.E).
(A quick note about the mention of "implantable" in the section's text. The type of implantable devices mentioned are pacemakers, defibrillators, and other such implantable devices which are necessary for the sustainment and/or health of the patient.)
Now, folks, this does not sound anything like "Big Brother" to me. In fact, the ability to have a central registry of medical devices could have been exceptionally useful when a patient wants to know the real safety record of a particular defibrillator that they are about to receive.
Conclusion
The point of this posting is moot, however, because the registry does not exist in the final bill. Most importantly, I desperately wanted to put to rest any rumors that the government had tried to slip in a "Big Brother"-style law.
I truly believe that such a registry would have been very useful to a patient who needs a defibrillator, and the doctor chooses a device with a proven safety record.
That's my take on this. Take it or leave it.
Well said!!!
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