Vizient established the Medical Device Cybersecurity Task Force following HHS's report on the critical condition of healthcare cybersecurity and the FDA's recent release of the Medical Device Action Plan.
Here are six insights.
1. The task force aims to minimize the risk and cost of medical device cybersecurity.
2. The group will foster collaboration between device manufacturers and healthcare providers to identify areas for improvement in healthcare cybersecurity and develop standard practices.
3. Vizient, a healthcare performance improvement company, will deliver a "multi-phase roadmap" on advancing cybersecurity in the industry.
4. The task force is comprised of information security leaders from 25 member health systems. The group will consult device manufacturers, suppliers, cybersecurity consultants and industry experts.
5. Vizient has more than 500 contracts with networked devices. It will modify its contract terminology and the weightings related to cybersecurity safeguards in the RFP scoring process to strengthen the cybersecurity of its portfolio devices.
6. "We are viewing this from an entire industry perspective, not just for Vizient members and suppliers, said Ross Carevic, director of technology sourcing operations. "Wherever possible, we intend to make key deliverables publicly available, which will help suppliers and providers prioritize their remediation plans for older medical devices and ensure appropriate safeguards are included in new devices for the benefit of all patients.".