1. INTRODUCTION

   The following development in the field of medical telemetry may be of significant interest to you and your clients or customers.

   The Federal Communications Commission ("FCC" or "Commission") recently allocated new spectrum and established rules for a Wireless Medical Telemetry Service ("WMTS"). These actions enable medical telemetry equipment to operate on an interference-protected basis and without an assigned FCC license. This means that hospitals, clinics and health care professionals now will be able to operate certain kinds of radio equipment without having to file an application with the FCC or wait for Commission review and approval before commencing operations.

2. BACKGROUND

   Medical telemetry equipment is used in health care facilities (e.g., hospitals or other establishments that offer services, facilities and beds for use beyond a 24 hour period in rendering medical care) to transmit patient measurement data to a nearby receiver. Examples of such equipment include heart, blood pressure and respiration monitors.

   These devices allow patients to be mobile, while still being monitored, during their recovery in a health care facility. In addition, medical telemetry equipment enables one health care worker to monitor several patients simultaneously and remotely, thus reducing health care costs.

3. NEW FCC WMTS RULES

The FCC declined to permit the use of WMTS at home or in moving vehicles but indicated it may revisit this decision at a later date. Further, WMTS may not be used for video communications. The Commission has excluded video communications from the new service because video use would occupy too much of the limited amount of spectrum available for medical telemetry. Likewise, voice communications have been excluded because the FCC wants to ensure that the new service will be used for monitoring a patient’s health and not be used as a wireless intercom service.

Although operators of medical telemetry equipment will not have to apply for licenses from the FCC, manufacturers must seek authorization for their equipment from the FCC’s Office of Engineering and Technology ("OET"), as required by the Commission’s certification rules concerning radio frequency devices. Manufacturers of telemetry equipment will have two years to produce equipment that will operate in the new bands. Any equipment certified by the OET after the expiration of the two-year transitional period may only operate on the new spectrum. Finally, the Commission determined that telemetry equipment that has been authorized to operate in older bands of spectrum may continue to be manufactured, imported, marketed and operated until age or interference concerns prevent use of the equipment on the older spectrum.

The Commission’s Order is expected to take effect early in the fourth quarter of 2000 (90 days after publication in the Federal Register, which has not yet occurred).