Chip Implants: Better Care or Privacy Scare?
Sunday, July 31, 2005
By Daniel J. DeNoon

They're here. They have FDA approval. But are Americans ready to get chipped?

Getting chipped means having a radio frequency identification (RFID) chip implanted in your body. The chip — about the size of a large grain of rice — lies dormant until a special scanner is passed within six inches of the implant. Then it emits a radio signal that beams a 16-digit number to the scanner.

For security uses, that 16-digit number acts like an electronic key. For medical uses, the number is linked to medical records. Doctors to whom you've granted access — emergency room doctors, for example — can use the key to quickly get hold of your medical records.
Who would want such a thing? That depends on how you ask, says Scott Silverman, CEO of Applied Digital, which makes the FDA-approved RFID called VeriChip.

"When we first announced VeriChip, a network poll asked people if they would put one in their bodies," Silverman tells WebMD. "Only 9 percent said yes. After FDA approval, 19 percent said yes. When former HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson joined our board, the rate went up to 33 percent. But our own study shows that if you ask people whether they would have a VeriChip implant to identify their medical records in case of an emergency, the positive response goes to 80 percent."

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