A dramatic change from the original 1991 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Standards for Accessible Design, the recently released 2010 ADA Standards update by the Department of Justice has been touted by experts as a great boon for accessibility.
Key changes in the latest ADA Standards will impact healthcare design
“The original standards came out very quickly after the initial ADA was passed and there wasn't a lot of time to think everything through,” explains James L. E. Terry, AIA, LEED AP, whose Birmingham, Alabama-based firm, Evan Terry Associates, works extensively with healthcare facilities nationwide as an architecture and access compliance consultant. “So ADA 2010 is essentially an opportunity to put another 20 years of thinking into creating something that works better for everybody, mostly through clarification and cleaning up language that has been difficult to interpret, apply, and enforce.”
Similarly, Cynthia K. Pozolo, AIA, NCARB, LEED AP, vice president, Kahn Detroit Studio Director, Albert Kahn Associates, observes, “The changes were developed with extensive input from the public and practitioners, and are very positive in their clarity and collaborative spirit.
Because they address previous ambiguities, they establish spatial and operational consistencies throughout buildings and facilities.”
While a number of changes-such as stricter reach range requirements, greater toilet room clearances, and clarified language for construction and manufacturing tolerances-are rather significant, the good news is they are quite minor when compared to the 2009 and 2006 International Building Code (IBC), currently in use in most states.
In particular, the IBC contains scoping for accessibility elements, while the widely adopted ICC/ANSI A117.1 2003 spells out the details describing those elements.
“Essentially, those who are already accustomed to complying with the 2009 IBC accessibility rules should have no problem with the 2010 ADA Standards,” assures Duane L. Jonlin, AIA, LEED AP, principal, NBBJ, Seattle.
Another important issue is determining which standards to use for the design of new healthcare projects with the new ADA officially going into effect on March 15, 2012. Private facilities can stick with the old standards on current and upcoming projects as long as a building permit application is submitted before the March 2012 deadline, on the other hand, state and local government hospital projects must begin using the ADA Standards immediately unless the start of physical construction begins prior to March 15, 2012.
Comparison of Single-User Toilet Room Layouts
Plan-2A: 1991 Standards Minimum with In-Swinging Door. 5′-0″ x 8′-6″ 42.50 Square Feet. Diagram courtesy of the U.S. Department of Justice.
Plan-2B: 2010 Standards Minimum with In-Swinging Door. 7′-0″ x 6′-6″ 45.50 Square Feet. Diagram courtesy of the U.S. Department of Justice.
Taking a closer look
Toilet rooms. Delving into some of the 2010 updates relevant to healthcare design, the shape and size of toilet rooms has changed as more space is now required around a toilet fixture. Consequently, the lavatory can no longer intrude into the toilet's 5-foot-wide clear floor space.
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