NGL Responds: Will Smartwatches replace COVID testing?

In a recent conversation with the tech news website Lifewire, Tommy Miller shared his take on whether smartwatches like the Apple watch could replace COVID testing in the near future.

Miller, the Life Sciences and FDA Practice Lead at Nixon Gwilt Law, doesn’t think you’ll be downloading a universal COVID symptom tracker app anytime soon.

He told Lifewire: 

“To get this claim approved, the research is going to have to be pretty solid in showing that there is a high correlation between the symptoms being recorded by the Apple Watch and the development of COVID-19," he said. 

"Even if the research does show a strong correlation, I do not think that the FDA is going to get to a point where it allows the Apple Watch to be marketed as a diagnostic—rather, an app could possibly be developed that can indicate early signs of the disease which may indicate someone should institute self-isolation protocols and seek confirmatory lab diagnostics."

Miller says one unintended byproduct of making symptom-tracking apps more reliable is highlighting healthcare inequalities.

"I do see these types of health tech advancements as benefiting most more economically stable suburban and urban families—which is counterintuitive when you consider that these populations should already have pretty good access to care,” he says. 

"Until policymakers can balance the scale on how to make these care options cheaper and more accessible for rural and lower-income families, while also being profitable for the companies developing these technologies, I think these types of advancements will continue to remain a commodity."

To read the entire article, including insights from bioinformatics experts and peer-reviewed studies, head to Lifewire.

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