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Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is warning state health agencies about potential Chinese espionage for medical technology.
Abbott has ordered Texas state health centers and public university programs to address potential cybersecurity risks linked to medical devices manufactured in China, raising concerns that sensitive patient data could be accessed by outside actors.
“Governor @GregAbbott_TX has issued an executive order directing state health agencies to mitigate data privacy concerns related to medical technology located in China,” Abbott’s office wrote Monday on X, releasing the letter.
“The Chinese Communist Party will not be allowed to spy on Texans.”
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Texas GOP Gov. Greg Abbott warns the Chinese are using medical technology to spy on Americans and his state. (Jay Janner/The Austin American-Statesman via Getty Images)
In a Monday letter to the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC), the Department of National Health (DSHS), the Texas Cyber Command (TXCC), and the chancellors of the public university system, Abbott said recent federal warnings about the vulnerability of certain patient monitoring devices underscore the need for increased protections.
“Maintaining the physical safety of Texans and protecting their privacy, especially as it relates to something as important and intimate as personal medical data, is extremely important,” Abbott wrote. “I will not allow Communist China to spy on Texans. Government-owned medical facilities must ensure that safeguards are in place to protect Texans’ private medical information.”
The order follows notices issued by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) warning that certain patient monitors made in China – including the Contec CMS8000 and Epsimed MN-120 – contain cybersecurity vulnerabilities that could allow unauthorized access to health information and remote access.
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Testing Chinese medical technology was first warned by the Trump administration and now Texas GOP Governor Greg Abbott is taking action. (Omar Marques/SOPA Images/LightRocket)
“These notices confirm the warnings of experts who have raised the proliferation of Chinese-made medical devices throughout our health care system as a data privacy concern,” Abbott wrote.
Under Abbott’s order, HHSC, DSHS, and state higher education programs must review purchasing policies to ensure compliance with Executive Order GA-48, a catalog of networked medical devices, and assess cybersecurity protections at state-run medical facilities.
The Texas Cyber Command is tasked with reviewing whether certain devices should be added to the government’s prohibited technology list and recommending additional protections.
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Agencies must submit reports and recommendations to the governor’s office by April 17.
Those answers will help Abbott propose legislation next session aimed at protecting Texans’ medical data from foreign adversaries.
