this post was submitted on 06 Mar 2024
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Never I thought I'd be reading about a wheelchair locked behind paywalls. What a ridiculous world we live in.
Edit: I'm glad you figured something out and that those profiteers won't get a cent out of it.
I'm imagining your shock when I tell you the cost of my entire wheelchair, which is a manual wheelchair with push assistance (like an e-bike).
Si what you're saying is that we need open source wheelchairs?
For fucks sake why isn't all assitive devices open source already. Making profit over disabled people misery is such a evil thing ! The capitalist are so fucking out of touch it's crazy. Kids dying, disabled people pressed for every penny they have etc... how the fuck did we let things go this bad.
Captive market. Easy prey.
Call it what you want, those with no morals have no boundaries. This is what laws are supposed to prevent, but y'know, the sociopaths have normalised greed and gluttony, and made it the "dream" of a nation.
I wouldn't be surprised if the reason behind no open source is some stupid legislation for 'reasons'.
My colleague built an ultrasound walking stick for his wife, but can't even give units to the local sight-impaired community organization due to regulations... He's given up on getting his design certified.
Open source wheelchairs; and a community of variously abled makers who can come together and build assemblies that are "not medical devices" but come together easily into something that could be used as such.
Speaking strictly for the US, and as a non-lawyer - I'm inclined to think that an open source wheelchair would probably sail right through the 510k process, but... Still doesn't make that process cheap by any means.
I've had similar thoughts re: CPAP/APAP machines, neither the SW nor the HW is brutally complex / poorly understood. Pretty straightforward stuff mostly. But trying to distribute a thing like that even as plans is just asking for a C&D from the FDA, I'd expect.
Insurance companies: you wouldn’t download a wheelchair.