U.S. Access Board Seeks Information on Low Transfer Surface Height for Medical Diagnostic Equipment

The U.S. Access Board currently has an open comment period through May 27, 2022 regarding the appropriate low-height of medical diagnostic equipment with transfer surfaces, including examination tables and chairs and diagnostic imaging medical equipment with tables, so that the equipment can be adjusted to accommodate the broadest range of users. As indicated in the published notice, the Board continues to seek information on low transfer heights for adjustable medical diagnostic equipment products that are currently on the market and any changes or innovations in their design and engineering that may have occurred since the Board issued its medical diagnostic equipment accessibility standards.

The Board will use this information to assess specifications for transfer surfaces in its medical diagnostic equipment (MDE) Accessibility Standards. Published in January 2017, these standards address various features of MDE, including the range of adjustability of transfer surfaces. In the rulemaking, there was a lack of consensus on what the low height for transfer surfaces should be, and the Board specified a temporary range of 17 – 19 inches with a sunset provision to allow time for further study. The sunset period was recently extended, and the Board recently commissioned a statistical analysis to provide further insight into this issue. The study report is available on the Board’s website.

Written comments can be submitted via email to mde@access-board.gov through May 27, 2022. The Board encourages all interested parties to comment on this topic. For further information, contact Bobby Stinnette of the Board by email at stinnette@access-board.gov or by phone at 1-202-272-0021.