Senators ask FCC to postpone action on new Channel 37 rules

Sens. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) today asked the Federal Communications Commission to delay by three months technical rules that would allow unlicensed TV White Space devices to operate on the same bandwidth hospitals use for patient monitoring. “It is imperative that the Commission establish fully adequate technical rules for sharing, as those rules will impact the safety and use of critical medical monitoring technology for hospitals,” the senators wrote. “We strongly urge you to give the medical technology stakeholders and the unlicensed community more time to work out a technical sharing agreement that will maintain the safe use of all devices in Channel 37.” The FCC plans to consider the technical rules when it meets tomorrow. In addition to the senators, sixteen House members have asked the FCC to postpone action on the rules since the AHA alerted Congress to hospitals’ concerns.