NEW: There is a crucial ventilator shortage. Meanwhile, hospitals can't repair ventilators because of the lobbying and monopolistic practices of ventilator manufacturers vice.com/en_us/article/…
The same thing John Deere and Apple do to prevent farmers and consumers from fixing their tractors and iPhones, GE Health, Philips, and Siemens do for medical devices. The rhetoric is the same, the tactics are the same. The effect is that people will die
We've posted two lobbying letters, one from @GEHealthcare and one from @AdvaMedUpdate, both lobbying against right to repair bills. Both sow fear and disinformation 
You might say "HEY! This isn't a tractor! We want authorized people to repair ventilators!" This is wrong.
First: The FDA studied & found "continued availability of third party entities to service & repair medical devices is critical to the functioning of the healthcare system."
First: The FDA studied & found "continued availability of third party entities to service & repair medical devices is critical to the functioning of the healthcare system."
That study is here, read it for yourself: fda.gov/media/113431/d…
Second: Hospitals **have** repair people. Every hospital does. They are just increasingly unable to fix machines because they are artificially locked out via software locks or because they can't access repair guides.
People like this guy Frank have been collecting ventilator repair manuals and posting them online. The problem is manufacturers have threatened to sue him: frankshospitalworkshop.com/equipment/vent…
Hospitals and right to repair organizations are calling on manufacturers to release repair guides and diagnostics during the coronavirus panic. Seems like a good idea.
