Recommendations on Standards for the Design of Medical Diagnostic Equipment for Adults with Disabilities, Advisory Committee Final Report

SUMMARY OF THE 19-INCH RECOMMENDATION

The subcommittee on tables and chairs convened by the U.S. Access Board’s Medical Diagnostic Equipment Technical Advisory Committee discussed transfer surface height extensively. The subcommittee concluded with a majority recommendation that examination tables and chairs have a lower adjustable height of 19 inches or lower.³ A minority of the subcommittee did maintain that 17 inches was preferred, and when this 19 inch recommendation was discussed with the full Advisory Committee on May 7th, 2013, the full committee was unable to reach a consensus position or even a strong majority sentiment.
Although the subcommittee’s conversations were complex and far-reaching, the following points summarize the factors that were considered in the selection of the 19 inch height recommendation:

• Equipment must be accessible to, and usable by, individuals with accessibility needs and will allow independent entry to, use of, and exit from the equipment by those individuals

• Carefully balance the costs to hospitals, physicians, and other health care providers of replacing or modifying existing equipment together with manufacturer costs of redesigning equipment

• Carefully balance the costs to hospitals, physicians, and other health care providers for providing alternative means of access (such as patient lifts, or staff providing lift assistance)

• Minimizing costs to health care systems

• Maximize rate of adoption of accessible equipment by health care providers and the benefits of that equipment to individuals with accessibility needs, particularly those who use wheeled mobility devices.

The minority report explains why a requirement for a 19 inch lower adjustable height for tables and chairs is the most appropriate standard for the initial implementation of section 4203 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

NOTES

3. Note that height measurement, as defined by the tables and chairs subcommittee, represents the highest point of the transfer surface, inclusive of bolsters, when measuring to the top of uncompressed foam. See the “Measurements of Tables and Chairs” subcommittee report, dated April 5th, 2013.