| Patients Win in New Airline Ruling |
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Oxygen patients will have easier travel, thanks to a new ruling by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) that says airlines must accept certain approved portable oxygen concentrators onboard flights. “For a couple of years now, airlines could choose whether to allow DOT-approved oxygen concentrators and many chose not to,” said Cheryl West, director of government affairs for the American Association for Respiratory Care (AARC). Further, West said “This ruling makes it mandatory for all airlines to let patients aboard with their approved devices.” The new rule will make it easier for passengers to use medical oxygen during flights by requiring airlines to allow the use in the passenger cabin of portable oxygen concentrators that meet applicable safety, security and hazardous materials requirements for safe use aboard aircraft. Other types of devices meeting similar requirements that are also permitted include portable ventilators, respirators and continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) machines.
The rule will apply to U.S. air carriers worldwide and to foreign air carriers whose flights begin or end in the U.S. The new rule takes effect in one year to give airlines time to implement the regulation. You can read the final rule at www.regulations.gov, docket number DOT-OST-2004-19482. Approved Concentrators Approved Concentrators These are the concentrators approved by the DOT that patients may carry aboard aircraft.
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