21 CFR § 890.5150 - Powered patient transport.

---
identifier: "/us/cfr/t21/s890.5150"
source: "ecfr"
legal_status: "authoritative_unofficial"
title: "21 CFR § 890.5150 - Powered patient transport."
title_number: 21
title_name: "Food and Drugs"
section_number: "890.5150"
section_name: "Powered patient transport."
chapter_name: "FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES"
subchapter_number: "H"
subchapter_name: "MEDICAL DEVICES"
part_number: "890"
part_name: "PHYSICAL MEDICINE DEVICES"
positive_law: false
currency: "2026-04-05"
last_updated: "2026-04-05"
format_version: "1.1.0"
generator: "[email protected]"
authority: "21 U.S.C. 351, 360, 360c, 360e, 360j, 360 371."
regulatory_source: "48 FR 53047, Nov. 23, 1983, unless otherwise noted."
cfr_part: "890"
---


# 890.5150 Powered patient transport.

(a) *Powered patient stairway chair lifts*—(1) *Identification.* A powered patient stairway chair lift is a motorized lift equipped with a seat and permanently mounted in one location that is intended for use in mitigating mobility impairment caused by injury or other disease by moving a person up and down a stairway.

(2) *Classification.* Class II. The stairway chair lift is exempt from premarket notification procedures in subpart E of part 807 of this chapter, subject to § 890.9 and the following conditions for exemption:

(i) Appropriate analysis and nonclinical testing (such as that outlined in the currently FDA-recognized edition of American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) A18.1 “Safety Standard for Platform Lifts and Stairway Chair Lifts”) must demonstrate that the safety controls are adequate to prevent a free fall of the chair in the event of a device failure;

(ii) Appropriate analysis and nonclinical testing must demonstrate the ability of the device, including armrests, to withstand the rated load with an appropriate factor of safety;

(iii) Appropriate restraints must be provided to prevent the user from falling from the device (such as that outlined in the currently FDA-recognized edition of ASME A18.1 “Safety Standard for Platform Lifts and Stairway Chair Lifts”);

(iv) Appropriate analysis and nonclinical testing (such as that outlined in the currently FDA-recognized editions of AAMI/ANSI/IEC 60601-1-2, “Medical Electrical Equipment—Part 1-2: General Requirements for Safety—Collateral Standard: Electromagnetic Compatibility—Requirements and Tests,” and ASME A18.1 “Safety Standard for Platform Lifts and Stairway Chair Lifts”) must validate electromagnetic compatibility and electrical safety; and

(v) Appropriate analysis and nonclinical testing must demonstrate the resistance of the device upholstery to ignition.

(b) *All other powered patient transport*—(1) *Identification.* A powered patient transport is a motorized device intended for use in mitigating mobility impairment caused by injury or other disease by moving a person from one location or level to another, such as up and down flights of stairs (e.g., attendant-operated portable stair-climbing chairs). This generic type of device does not include motorized three-wheeled vehicles or wheelchairs.

(2) *Classification.* Class II.

[78 FR 14017, Mar. 4, 2013]