No supply, no survival: why patients must be involved in global trade decisions

Abstract

Tariffs and price hikes are putting access to medical devices at risk Every 10 days I insert a glucose sensor into my skin; every three days I change the site for my insulin pump. These US made devices are how I manage my diabetes, and how I stay alive. But they are not exempt from broad trade tariffs, and like many other essential medical technologies they are now caught in an increasingly fragile global supply chain. People living with disabilities and long term conditions are quietly paying the price for opaque trade policies. Whether it’s steel tariffs delaying infusion sets for diabetes, aluminium costs impacting the production of mobility aids, or electronics disruptions affecting hearing aids, the story is the same: lives are being placed at risk by decisions made far from the people they affect.123 Steel based infusion sets, …