36 CFR Part 1195 Standards for Accessible Medical Diagnostic Equipment - Preamble

M305.2.3 Height (Section-by-Section Analysis)

In the MDE NPRM there was no specific requirement regarding the height of the transfer support, only that it be “within reach” of the patient (proposed M305.2.1). The Access Board sought input from the public in question 20 of the MDE NPRM preamble, on whether a transfer support height requirement of 6 inches minimum and 19 inches maximum above the transfer surface would be usable by patients with disabilities. NPRM, 77 FR at 6925. Six commenters responded to question 20. Four commenters (two manufacturers, one disability rights organization, and a state agency concerned with accessibility) supported the proposed height range. Three commenters (a manufacturer, a medical association, and a disability rights organization) did not support the proposal. The manufacturer opposing the proposed range raised concerns with its ability to attain a 19-inch height on its diagnostic equipment. The medical association asserted that radiography exam tables are not equipped with transfer bars, and if required should retract fully into the surface of the table and the disability rights organization expressed concern that 19 inches was too high to facilitate safe transfer.

The MDE Advisory Committee supported adding a requirement setting the height of transfer supports within the range described in question 20 in the MDE NPRM preamble, of 6 inches minimum and 19 inches maximum. The MDE Advisory Committee explained that the manufacturers on the Committee determined that this recommendation did not conflict with the IEC 60601-2-52, which provides requirements for side rails to prevent entrapment hazards, and would allow the equipment to be designed to provide accessibility and safety from entrapment hazards. MDE Advisory Committee Report, 94, available at https://www.access-board.gov/guidelines-and-standards/health-care/about-this-rulemaking/advisory-committee-final-report. Additionally, for transfer surfaces that are greater than 24 inches deep, the MDE Advisory Committee recommended requiring a positioning support instead of a transfer support, with a height of three to six inches above the transfer surface. Id.

The Access Board considered the public comments and the MDE Advisory Committee’s recommendations, and has decided to include a new provision, M305.2.3 in the final rule, that requires the tops of transfer support gripping surfaces to be located 6 inches minimum and 19 inches maximum higher than the top of the associated uncompressed transfer surface during use. This range allows the manufacturer to choose a height between 6 inches and 19 inches to place their transfer supports; it does not require that the transfer supports be 19 inches high. The transfer support is permitted to be horizontal, angled, curved, or a combination of these as long as the top of any point along the gripping surface is located at or between 6 inches and 19 inches. Thus, the commenter’s concern about reaching the 19-inch height is not warranted. Secondly, as discussed above in Section IV.E.1.b (Significant Changes –Positioning Supports), the Access Board has declined to include the MDE Advisory Committee’s recommended positioning supports in the final rule; however, the Access Board does concur with the MDE Advisory Committee that for imaging equipment with transfer surfaces that exceed 24 inches in width, a lower transfer support is warranted. Therefore, in the final rule, the Access Board has provided an exception that permits transfer supports to be located three inches minimum and six inches maximum higher than the tops of the transfer surfaces for imagining beds that are greater than 24 inches wide.