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Welcome to News from Loop and Learn

Master Your DIY Closed-Loop Insulin Delivery System

Published on 26 August 2025.

In this edition:

Upcoming Video Conference Sessions

Loop and Learn: Informal Discussion (Open Mic) virtual meetings are scheduled on the second Thursday of each month and the fourth Saturday of each month.

There is also an Italian Open Mic on the last Tuesday of each month for iOS and Android loopers (with Patrick Sonnerat for AAPS).

Calendar

Topic Recorded? Time Date
Loop and Learn Italia: Informal Discussion
Open Mic on last Tuesday of each month
Google Meet		 no 19:00 UTC 26 August 2025
Loop and Learn: Informal Discussion
Open Mic on 2nd Thursday
Zoom		 no 18:00 UTC 11 September 2025
Loop and Learn: Informal Discussion
Open Mic on 4th Saturday
Zoom		 no 21:00 UTC 27 September 2025
Loop and Learn Italia: Informal Discussion
Open Mic on last Tuesday of each month
Google Meet		 no 19:00 UTC 30 September 2025

Video Conference Sessions use the following links every month:

Time Zone Converter

Need help figuring out when an event happens in your time zone? Try the SavvyTime: UTC Converter.

iOS Update

iOS 18.6.1 and 18.6.2 were tested and cleared by our mentors.

Both of these minor updates run the OS-AID apps just fine. But check the state of * iOS Software Update - make sure it is still set to Download only * TestFlight automatic update - all the TestFlight apps on one mentor's phone were modified to enable Automatic Updates to the phone from TestFlight * Be sure to restore the settings so that updates happen when you are awake and can check the state of your looping phone after the update completes

Saturday Open Mics

We had another great discussion at Saturday’s Open Mic (on 23 August 2025). Thank you to all who attended and welcome to our new members and attendees! These Open Mics were added to our schedule at a time that we hope is more appealing to our Australian friends than our Tuesday ones. So join us, Aussies!

Exciting AAPS News!

AAPS can now be built with Browser! We were excited when the Browser Build debuted for Loop. And Trio. The excitement has spread all the way to the Android platform! AAPS Browser Build

US Persons - Advocacy Campaign

This is the copy of the letter folks in the US should respond to.

URGENT ADVOCACY CAMPAIGN for US MEMBERS

SUBJECT: COMPETITIVE BIDDING CTA

TAKE ACTION NOW: The deadline is Friday, 29 August 2025

The US Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has proposed a competitive bidding program for CGMs and insulin pumps, and aims to classify these devices under a rental program under Medicare. The proposal would have significant impacts on patients with diabetes in the United States: insulin pumps and CGMs would become rented equipment.

What's proposed?

  • Patients would rent their devices instead of owning them.
  • Patients may have to return their devices before getting a new one, risking interruptions in care that could be dangerous.
  • The number of diabetes equipment suppliers is being whittled down from hundreds to somewhere between 2 AND 9 national suppliers, drastically limiting choice and creating coverage gaps.

There is no indication that this program would save beneficiaries money as proposed.

This starts with Medicare—but private insurance always follow. If passed, this will affect ALL of us.

Who does this affect?

The proposed changes would directly threaten access for Medicare patients; however, these changes also have the potential to impact cost, access, and choice in diabetes technology for individuals under commercial insurance and Medicaid coverage.

What does DPAC think?

Instead of complicating access, CMS should update outdated pump coverage rules — which have remained unchanged for 20 years — and strengthen education benefits like Diabetes Self-Management Training.

How can I take action?

DPAC made the process simple: using the link above, submit their pre-written letter with any of your additional comments to CMS by Friday, August 29, 2025.

The Diabetes Patient Advocacy Coalition (DPAC) is an alliance of people with diabetes, caregivers, patient advocates, health professionals, disease organizations, and companies working collaboratively to promote and support public policy initiatives to improve the health of people with diabetes. DPAC seeks to ensure the safety and quality of medications, devices, and services, and access to care for all 38 million Americans with diabetes.

Hackathon ‘25 Fundraising

The open source developers need our support! On November 14-16, 2025, about 40 attendees will gather in Vancouver, BC for another meeting of the minds to work on refining the apps we use for diabetes management. We are excited to see what will come out of this year’s “Hack” and invite you to help support it with your generous donations to Nightscout Foundation. These volunteer developers spend so much of their "free" time thinking about features that we didn't know we needed and focusing on critical improvements that we'll never notice. Our support will help them to continue their innovative work in developing Loop, Trio, OpenAPS, AAPS, and perhaps a new solution that we haven't even dreamed of yet.

Here are details about the success of last year’s event, for which over 100 people from around th4 world helped raise over $25,000.

Please pay it forward by making a donation to the Nightscout Foundation to support this important event.

Dexcom Alerts

Check your Dexcom alerts section for a settings change. A setting seems to have been added during a recent update (version 2.10.0). Now there are “sound”, “vibrate”, and “match phone settings”- which could be either vibrate or sound. The alerts got reset to defaults, which are very loud. Each alert volume needs to be set individually, so be sure to set yours to a volume you prefer and do it when no one else is around to be annoyed.

iPad as Backup Device

If your Loop or Trio device takes a dive and you have an iPad running iPadOS 17 or higher, you can use your iPad as an interim looping device. Or if you have really big pockets, you could use it permanently.

Remember, always have a backup plan and when using OS-AID, be prepared to rebuild.

iPhone 17 & DASH Warning

The iPhone 17 will probably be available for preorder on 12 September 2025, after Apple makes their announcement on 9 or 10 September. All loopers should be very careful about upgrading your looping phone until you have gotten the “all clear” from our testers. As a reminder, your looping phone is a medical device and should be treated accordingly. Version testing, including hardware updates, are announced on our website, on Facebook, here in the newsletter and on Instagram.

DASH loopers (this means Loop, Trio, TAI, iAPS, etc) all should wait. The new Atlas (InPlay BLE) DASH pods are being manufactured and they are likely to show up in your pod supply soon. There is no known solution to the difficultly these pods exhibit with iPhone 16 hardware. The issues are difficulty pairing the pods initially (just keep hitting retry) and the delayed reconnection after each disconnect.

We have filed a Feedback form with Apple, but we have no further information.

Meal AI and Loop

While a new experimental Food AI customization is available, we want to emphasize that it is not in the regular script for building Loop and is not in the released version of Loop.

Additionally, Loop and Learn is not the place to get support for this experimental feature- at least not yet. Support can be found on Loop Zulipchat. If and when this feature becomes an official part of the Loop ecosystem, you will definitely hear about it here, in our Facebook group, and on our website.

There are also links about this proposed feature on the Loop Features in Development page.

Bubble Prevention in Flight

Butch Weaver, a pilot and fellow looper on Zulipchat, recently shared hismethod of purging pods of bubbles and dissolved air when filling. If you’ve ever had unexplained BG lows a couple of hours into an airline flight, or highs soon after landing, dissolved air may have been the reason.

LoopFollow 3.2

This update brings one of the most requested features to LoopFollow:

  • Remote Control for Loop (via Apple Push Notifications) – Send carbs, boluses, and overrides directly to Loop from LoopFollow – Uses One-Time Passwords for security (with protection against re-use within the app) – LoopFollowDocs updated with full details on Remote Control

  • Bugfix: The missed readings alert is now working again

  • Other updates: – Browser build updated to Xcode 16.4 (fixes browser build failures)

See the full changelog for more details.

Big thanks to everyone contributing, especially Daniel Mini Johansson for his work on Loop Remote Commands

Where Do You Wear Your Pod?

Age, skin flexibility, and body composition all influence which locations (arm, leg, abdomen, etc.) and orientations (such as having the cannula facing up, down, or sideways) work best for each individual. As we’ve often shared, placing a piece of medical tape on the skin beneath the cannula area before applying the pod can help stabilize the cannula where it enters your skin: this can reduce leakage and may extend wear time. For added security, you can also use an overpatch -or simply place another piece of medical tape over the pod itself.

Another consideration is activities the wearer may be planning to engage in. For example, a person who is going backpacking may want to avoid abdominal placement so the hip belt will not dislodge the pod or cause discomfort.

Skin Reactions to Diabetes Devices in People of Color

Researchers at Stanford are tackling the issue of reactions to adhesives on CGM and insulin delivery devices. If you are an adult who wears one or both of these devices, please participate in the study, follow this link. Even if you are not a person of color, you can complete the survey for the study’s comparison purposes. It’s quick and easy to participate.

T1D to 100 at ADCES

A recent session led by Dr. Nancy Allen, Dr. Christina Whitehouse, and longtime T1D advocate (our own) Joanne Milo challenged the idea that age should limit access to advanced diabetes technology. The speakers emphasized that safe and effective use depends on ability, support, and adaptability—not age. Dr. Allen highlighted age-related challenges such as reduced dexterity, sensory changes, and cognitive decline, noting that these should be treated as design and education challenges rather than barriers. She pointed to strategies like simplifying device interfaces, repeating training, and involving caregivers. She also referenced the ADA Standards of Care and the “4Ms” framework (mentation, medications, mobility, and what matters most) as tools for integrating technology into age-friendly care systems.

Joanne brought a powerful personal perspective, reflecting on her 60+ years with T1D and the life-changing role of CGM, remote monitoring, and Loop technology. She argued strongly against removing older adults from technology, calling it a critical safety net. She shared practical supports such as pump checklists, infusion site tips, tailored alarms, and trained caregiver networks, and described her role in building peer communities like Loop and Learn and the soon-to-be-launched T1Dto100.com.

Dr. Whitehouse reinforced the importance of tailoring solutions, sharing a case study of a 72-year-old with arthritis who succeeded with pump therapy through small adaptations like magnifiers and quick-reference guides.

Together, the panelists showed that with thoughtful support and flexibility, technology can reduce risks, improve independence, and significantly enhance quality of life for older adults with diabetes.

Close Concerns shared an in-depth description of the presentation.

Facebook Q&A