Abstract

Twenty-seven years ago, in Olmstead v. L.C., the Supreme Court held that improperly institutionalizing people with disabilities is a form of unlawful discrimination. In doing so, the Court acknowledged that people with disabilities have a right to live free from confinement. Yet today, repair restrictions and outdated Medicare standards combine to threaten powered-wheelchair users' ability to live out in the world. Some states have responded by passing right-to-repair laws, which require powered-wheelchair manufacturers and suppliers to provide the resources necessary for more accessible and more timely repairs. This Note analyzes these state laws in the context of previous right-to repair solutions—national memoranda of understanding regarding farm equipment and motor vehicles, and state laws addressing the repair of consumer electronics. This Note proceeds by examining the most effective way to guarantee the right to repair powered wheelchairs going forward. More robust state repair laws, combined with more realistic Medicare standards, will ensure powered-wheelchair users have a right to live in the world.

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