ADA Compliance and the SonoBed Standard

Getting a patient onto an exam table sounds simple until the table won't move and the patient can't get up onto a fixed 32 inch surface without help. It's a scenario sonographers run into often, and it's exactly what a federal rule on medical diagnostic equipment addresses.

What the ADA Requires

In August 2024, the U.S. Department of Justice adopted the U.S. Access Board's Standards for Accessible Medical Diagnostic Equipment (MDE) into its ADA Title II regulation, making them enforceable under Title II for the first time. The Access Board first issued these standards in 2017, covering exam tables, exam chairs, weight scales, mammography equipment, and x-ray machines.

The core requirement for exam tables and chairs: the transfer surface, where the patient sits or lies down, has to lower to somewhere between 17 and 19 inches from the floor, wheelchair transfer height, so a patient can move on and off independently instead of being lifted. Most fixed exam tables sit around 32 inches, which is where the difficulty starts.

By August 9, 2026, state and local government entities that use exam tables must have at least one that meets the standard.

NOTE: Title II applies to state and local government entities: public hospitals, public clinics, and health care systems run by public colleges and universities. Private practices aren't bound by this specific rule, but the Access Board's MDE Standards have served as national best practice guidance for accessible equipment since 2017. Getting ahead of the standard means not scrambling to catch up later.

How SonoBed Exam Beds Meet the Standard

Nearly every SonoBed exam bed, across our Cardiac, Vascular, Women's Care, and General & Multi-Use lines, can be built with the Ultra-Low Column, our best-selling ergonomic option. It lowers the bed to 19 inches, wheelchair transfer height, and raises electrically to 38 inches for the exam itself, so the patient can enter and exit the bed on their own instead of relying on the sonographer. That's also where a lot of sonographer injuries happen, which is why we built it.

The SonoBed Sparrow: An Alternative to Box Exam Beds

A standard box exam table is fixed at one height, usually around 32 inches, with no floor clearance for a portable lift and no way for a patient to transfer independently. The Sparrow was built to fix that, without the price tag of our full-featured models. Add the Ultra-Low Column, and the Sparrow's transfer height falls right within the 17 to 19 inch range the standard calls for.

Standard on every Sparrow:

  • Hidden stirrups that slide out when needed and store under the frame, permanently attached so they never leave the bed
  • A dropping foot panel that helps position patients for exams like carotid and thyroid studies
  • 600 lb. lift capacity, 900 lb. load capacity
  • 2-inch bariatric-grade foam and quality vinyl upholstery
  • Powder-coated steel frame, made in the USA, arrives fully assembled

Popular add-ons:

  • Ultra-Low Column, dropping the bed to 19 inches for accessible transfer
  • Central Locking Casters, to lock or unlock all four wheels at once
  • Ergo Rails, designed by Jason Stasney to fit under the bed frame so there's room for the sonographer's knees
  • Foot controls, power foot panel, and headrail options

For a practice weighing a box bed against something built for both patient access and sonographer ergonomics, the Sparrow is the budget-friendly way to get there.

Sonographer Owned, Sonographer Tested

SonoBed was established by the Stasney family in 1995. We're sonographer-owned; our exam beds are designed and tested by sonographers, and Jason Stasney, RVT, RDCS, still has a hand in every design. That's the same reason the Ultra-Low Column exists: not because a regulation asked for it, but because sonographers told us where they were getting hurt.

Ready to talk through which model and options fit your practice?

Call us at (888) 256-8748 or request a quote.