Panel to Provide Recommendations on Accessibility Standards for Medical Devices
The United States Access Board has created an advisory committee of manufacturers, hospitals, and other stakeholders to make recommendations on standards for diagnostic equipment for people with disabilities.
The formation of the Medical Diagnostic Equipment Accessibility Standards Advisory Committee was announced in a press release from the board. The committee will provide recommendations on the standards’ technical criteria and any issues that arose in public comments on the documents, which were released earlier this year. The public comment period closed on June 8.
Proposed Accessibility Standards for Medical Diagnostic are designed to “improve the quality of healthcare for individuals with disabilities, and ensure that they receive examinations, diagnostic procedures, and other healthcare services equal to those received by individuals without disabilities,” the board says.
The standards examine disability access to products such as chairs, weight scales, and mammography equipment. They are not in and of themselves mandatory, but that doesn’t mean they won’t affect manufacturers and healthcare facilities.
An agency such as the U.S. Department of Justice could compel a hospital to acquire equipment that conforms to the standards, according to the board.
The committee’s members were chosen based on responses to a notice requesting nominations. It includes members from GE Healthcare, Duke University and Medical Center, the National Council on Independent Living, and Hill-Rom Company Inc.
Details on the committee’s first meeting, expected to occur in September, are being finalized, the board says. The committee will meet publicly at least four times over the course of two months and then present its recommendations.
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Posted: July 11, 2012