Accessible Travel Tips for Medical Trips

Short answer: Plan accessible travel in three parts: the flight, the room and the local rides. U.S. rules give you specific rights in each. Airlines can't charge for the disability services federal rules require, and most of those services can't be conditioned on advance notice. [S01] [S02] Hotels must describe their accessible rooms and hold the specific room you book. [S06] Transit agencies that run ADA paratransit must serve visitors for up to 21 days a year. [S07] Knowing what to ask for, and when, prevents most problems.

Travel for cancer care often means a wheelchair, a walker, medical devices or simply limited energy. This guide walks through each leg of a trip and the rules that protect you. For a step-by-step view of the airport itself, see our airport wheelchair assistance guide.

Accessible travel checklist

Flights: what airlines must provide

The Air Carrier Access Act rules, in 14 CFR Part 382, set out what airlines owe passengers with disabilities.

Advance notice is the exception

In general, an airline can't require you to give advance notice to get the services the rule requires. [S01] There are listed exceptions. An airline may require up to 48 hours' notice and a check-in one hour before the general public to: [S01]

• Use your own ventilator, respirator, CPAP machine or portable oxygen concentrator (POC) on board
• Bring an electric wheelchair on a plane with fewer than 60 seats
• Get hazardous-materials packaging for batteries in assistive devices
• Travel on a stretcher, if the airline offers it
• Get an on-board wheelchair on a plane with more than 60 seats and no accessible lavatory
• Travel as a group of 10 or more people with disabilities

If the airline offers its own in-flight medical oxygen, it may ask for 48 hours' notice on domestic flights and up to 72 hours on international flights. [S01] Airlines don't have to offer that service. [S01] Even when notice isn't required, telling the airline early still helps it prepare.

Free means free

Airlines can't charge for facilities, equipment or services the rule requires. [S02] They may charge for extra services the rule doesn't require, and for a second seat if your size or condition, such as traveling on a stretcher, takes up more than one seat. [S02]

Bring your devices on board

Airlines must let you bring a manual or folding wheelchair, canes, crutches, walkers and other assistive devices into the cabin, as long as they can be stowed under safety rules. [S03] That includes prescription medicines and the devices used to give them, such as syringes or auto-injectors. [S03] These items don't count toward your carry-on limit. [S03] Our guide on how to pack medications covers keeping medicines organized for the trip.

Getting through security

TSA offers Passenger Support Specialists, officers with specialized training in helping travelers with disabilities or medical conditions through screening. [S05] To request one, contact TSA Cares at least 72 hours before your flight using the online form or by calling (855) 787-2227. [S05] A specialist helps you through screening, but you'll still be screened, and it isn't an expedited lane. [S05]

Hotels: booking a room that actually works

An "accessible room" can mean very different things, from a roll-in shower to a tub with grab bars. The ADA rules for lodging reservations, in 28 CFR 36.302(e), are designed to prevent that. They apply to reservations made by phone, in person or through a third party. [S06] A hotel must: [S06]

• Let you reserve accessible rooms during the same hours and in the same way as other guests
• Describe accessible features of the hotel and rooms in enough detail for you to decide whether they meet your needs
• Hold accessible rooms for people who need them until all other rooms of that type are rented
• Reserve an accessible room on request and block it from all reservation systems
• Guarantee that the specific accessible room you reserved is held for you

There's an important exception. The last three protections don't apply to individual units the property doesn't own or substantially control, such as some condo-style rentals. [S06]

Questions to ask before you book:

• Is the shower roll-in, or a tub with a seat?
• How wide are the doorways, and is there space beside the bed for a wheelchair?
• Are there grab bars by the toilet and in the shower?
• How high is the bed?
• Is the route from the entrance to the room step-free?
• Is there a refrigerator for medicines?

Get the answers in writing. If you're comparing options for a longer stay, our hotel vs Airbnb guide covers the trade-offs.

Local rides: paratransit as a visitor

If you use ADA paratransit at home, you may be able to use it where you're getting treatment. Transit agencies that provide ADA complementary paratransit must offer it to visitors who don't live in their service area. [S07]

• Bring proof. The agency must treat you as eligible if you show documentation that you're ADA paratransit eligible where you live. [S07]
• No paperwork from home? The agency may ask for proof of where you live and, if your disability isn't apparent, proof of your disability. [S07]
• Know the limit. Visitors get service for any combination of 21 days in a 365-day period, starting from your first ride. [S07]
• No new application required. The agency can't make you apply for its own certification before you ride. [S07]

For longer stays beyond 21 days, ask the local agency about applying for its own eligibility. Our guide to transportation to appointments covers other ride options.

When something goes wrong

At the airport, ask for the Complaints Resolution Official (CRO). U.S. airlines using planes with 19 or more seats must make a CRO available at every airport they serve while operating there, in person or by phone at no cost to you. [S04] If staff don't immediately resolve a disability-related concern, they must tell you about your right to a CRO and contact one for you or give you a way to do it. [S04] A CRO can overrule other airline staff, though not a pilot's safety decision. [S04]

At a security checkpoint, you can ask to speak with a supervisor, and you can send a concern to the TSA Contact Center afterward. [S08] Write down names, times and what happened while it's fresh.

Put it all in one plan

Accessible travel works best when every booking, confirmation and phone number sits in one place. Our free Appointment Logistics Planner is a printable sheet for organizing the practical details of each appointment, such as the building address, arrival instructions and how you're getting there. Use your center's own instructions as the source of truth.