Faculty of Law, University of Copenhagen, Denmark.
Department of Humanities and Law, Bournemouth University, Bournemouth, UK.
Med Law Rev. 2020 Aug 1;28(3):615-624. doi: 10.1093/medlaw/fwaa012.
This contribution analyses the first decision by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) on the qualification and regulation of stand-alone software as medical devices. Referring to the facts of the case and the applicable European Union (EU) regulatory framework, the Court specifically found that prescription support software may constitute a medical device. This would even be the case where the software does not act directly in or on the human body. Yet, according to the CJEU, it is necessary that the intended purpose falls within one or more of the 'medical purpose' categories of the regulatory definition of 'medical device'. The case has important implications, not only for specific legal debates, but it also signifies a paradigm shift with a rapidly increasing digitalisation of the health and life sciences. This highlights the demand for continuous debates over the necessary evolution of the regulatory framework applying to the interface of medical artificial intelligence (AI) and Big Data.
本项贡献分析了欧洲联盟法院(CJEU)就独立软件作为医疗器械的定性和监管做出的首项裁决。法院参考案件事实和适用的欧盟(EU)监管框架,明确认定处方支持软件可能构成医疗器械。即使软件并非直接作用于人体内部或之上,亦属如此。然而,根据 CJEU 的意见,软件的预期用途必须属于监管定义的“医疗器械”的“医疗用途”类别之一或多类。这一案例不仅对具体的法律辩论具有重要意义,而且标志着健康和生命科学领域快速数字化的范式转变。这凸显出需要就适用于医疗人工智能(AI)和大数据接口的监管框架的必要演变进行持续辩论。