Orlando Democrats push for Floridians to have the right to repair their wheelchairs

Local college student JJ Holmes, 21, has been waiting on a new armrest for his powered wheelchair for over a year, according to his mom. Holmes, who was born with cerebral palsy, jokingly told a panel of state senators earlier this month that he’s “the proud owner of a power chair held together by the finest Dollar Store engineering money can buy.”

The armrest on his chair is currently a mix of pool noodles and duct tape, he said, because the actual parts are still on back-order. Holmes is one of millions of people in the United States who rely on wheelchairs for mobility, so they’re not stuck in their own homes or confined to a bed.

But the path toward repairing parts of wheelchairs that malfunction or break isn’t as smooth as you’d think. There are two national wheelchair suppliers, owned by private equity firms, that dominate the industry. And because of restrictive rules they impose through their warranties, wheelchair owners like Holmes rely on the manufacturers themselves, or their authorized vendors, to get any sort of repair done — even when it’s something as simple as replacing a $20 button.

“I know of somebody that waited six months to get a seat belt repaired on their chair,” Laura-Lee Minutello, a public policy analyst for Disability Rights Florida — who also uses a wheelchair — told state senators. “A seat belt is a part that you can get and screw on yourself. They cost about $20,” she pointed out.

The two wheelchair suppliers — Numotion and National Seating and Mobility — restrict consumers and independent repair shops from accessing relevant software, tools, parts and service manuals, preventing users of their products from doing their own repairs or visiting repair shops not authorized by the manufacturers.

Wheelchair breakdowns have grown more common, as the multibillion-dollar wheelchair industry reaps massive profits, an aging population is expected to make the country more reliant on such devices moving forward.

Two state Democrats from the Orlando area, Sen. Carlos Guillermo-Smith and Rep. Anna Eskamani, are leading the charge to address some of these barriers through what’s known nationally as “right-to-repair” legislation.

“This bill just ensures that wheelchair owners and independent repair providers have access to the tools, parts, information necessary to diagnose, maintain and repair motorized wheelchairs,” Dr. Eskamani said of House Bill 311, heard by the House Industries & Professional Activities committee on Wednesday.

“By preventing manufacturers from restricting these such repairs, the bill empowers individuals with disabilities to maintain their mobility, their freedom and their independence without unnecessary delays or high cost,” she continued. “It also “creates more competition in the repair marketplace,” she added, “and allows for independent repair shops to open up, thus creating new jobs.”

Miraculously, her bill was approved by the Republican-dominated House panel unanimously in a 16 to 0 vote, with two state representatives absent. Smith’s version of the bill (SB 412), introduced in the state Senate, passed its own committee, also unanimously, earlier this month.

“Access to affordable and timely repairs for powered wheelchairs is not a luxury — it’s a necessity,” Smith told Orlando Weekly in a statement. “This bill is a crucial step forward in ensuring the independence and well-being of wheelchair users across Florida. As someone who champions the needs of our diverse community, I am proud to file this bill along with Representative Eskamani.”

“Access to affordable and timely repairs for powered wheelchairs is not a luxury — it’s a necessity.”

Both legislators, among the most progressive in the state Legislature, are tentatively hopeful their legislation will move forward. Because Republicans dominate the state Legislature and have control over which bills are added to committee agendas, it’s never guaranteed that even common-sense legislation will even reach a vote.

“Sometimes we have these really big bills with big price tags, and this is not that, right?” Eskamani pointed out, speaking to her colleagues Wednesday. “It’s a small bill with no price tag, but it has a really huge ripple effect, especially for Floridians every day that are incredibly courageous and brave as they live independent lives in a landscape that isn’t always built for folks.”

Under their proposals, manufacturers of motorized wheelchairs sold or used in Florida would be required to provide documents, tools and any parts necessary for repairs to third-party repair providers and wheelchair owners.

They’d also be required to make tools and documents available “at fair and reasonable terms,” a House staff analysis states, “which means at either no cost or at the actual cost of preparing and sending the document or tool.”

Right-to-repair is a global movement, spanning beyond wheelchairs to all sorts of devices, that has picked up steam through the advocacy of people like Holmes and Minutello. Colorado was the first state to give powered wheelchair owners the right to repair in 2022. Six others — including California, Oregon, New York, Maine and Massachusetts — have since followed suit.

“Ultimately, this bill is simple,” Smith told his colleagues on the Senate Commerce & Tourism committee this month. “It gives power chair owners choices. It opens up the free market to lower costs and reduce delay times, and most importantly, it can improve the lives of our most vulnerable constituents.”

A 2022 survey of wheelchair owners found that out-of-pocket repair costs for a wheelchair breakdown ranged from $50 to $620. Medicare doesn’t cover preventative maintenance for wheelchairs, nor do other insurers.

The estimated wait time for repairs is another significant hurdle. Minutello, with Disability Rights Florida, told House lawmakers that waiting for repairs through manufacturers can take anywhere from a few weeks up to six months, depending on the type of repair and where the user lives.

“There is a control box on my own chair hanging down by a single wire,” Minutello  pointed out to senators. “If that were to break today, I maybe would not only be unable to talk to you today, but maybe unable to talk to you for a week, maybe not appear before you for the entirety of session.“

Malfunctioning or broken devices can also, in some cases, pose a significant health and safety risk. “There have actually been cases where people have gotten very, very sick or in some cases died due to lack of repair on their chairs,” she said.

The legislation would not require wheelchair manufacturers to disclose trade secrets to independent repair providers. Nor would it alter any existing agreements between authorized repair providers and wheelchair manufacturers.

Both Smith and Eskamani, however, are working on amendments to their legislation to account for more complicated repair jobs. Eskamani told Orlando Weekly over email that she’s working with one Florida-based manufacturer who does custom wheelchairs for more complex clients “to ensure no unintended consequences.”

Smith, a former state representative elected to the Senate in November, admitted during his bill’s hearing earlier this month that their legislation won’t solve all of the problems that wheelchair users face.

The bill doesn’t give people free money. Nor does it affect the quality of chair parts — their sturdiness or reliability — or change what health insurance will or will not cover.

“We know that this bill is not, unfortunately, going to solve every issue that the owners of powered wheelchairs experience, but we’re certainly willing to give it a try to make sure that we actually offer those consumer choices to those power wheelchair owners to be able to actually try to repair their device,” said Smith.

If you have any strong feelings on the legislation or want it to move forward, consider contacting your state rep and senator to let them know where you stand.

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This article appears in Mar 26 – Apr 1, 2025.