Medical imaging is not a law school topic, so why are lawyers doing this work?
The FLARE! Project has been fighting to help fat people advocate for medical access from the beginning. Imaging machines that don’t fit are a very common obstacle to people getting care.
Many times fat people are denied care because of discrimination, including diagnostic equipment that is not accessible. Like many of the fat people who called for help, FLARE’s founder was also unable to find imaging:
“I was given a scan, told to wait a few hours, then receive a second scan. First scan went fine, but shift change occurred. The second technician sent me to be weighed on a cadaver scale in the basement, then declined to do the scan because I was over the weight limit by about 5 pounds. Doctors tried briefly and unsuccessfully to find imaging with a higher capacity, and released me saying I was ‘probably ok.’ Years later, I needed more imaging. This time, the doctors told me to call the zoo. The zoo’s response? We wish they’d stop telling (fat) people to call us – we do not have machines that can do that!”
FLARE Project Founder
Shortly after I took over the FLARE Project, in 2019, I started compiling a internal list of imaging machines, their maximum weights, dimensions, and locations for use by people who called. Our Legal Fellow, Ragen Chastain, expanded that list tremendously and worked to transform the internal information into a free, searchable public database that people can access on their own. We hope this information helps! We all deserve equal access to quality care.
This list is not comprehensive, but it can be improved with your help. If you are going for imaging, please help us build and maintain the In Our Image database by sharing information about higher capacity machines you find! (And by helping us correct any out of date information you discover.)
Brandie Solovay, Esq.
Director of FLARE!
(A project of SolovayLaw)
Search
View our imaging locations database at tinyurl.com/in-our-image.
Share
Share our database with your friends and family – knowing where to get care can save lives!
Add a Location
Do you know about another imaging location that is accessible to higher weight patients (300 pounds and up)? Please submit the information you have here so we can add this location to our database.
Volunteer
Do you want to volunteer with the In Our Image Project by researching and verifying the imaging equipment at imaging locations that are submitted for our database? We can teach you exactly what to ask when you contact the facilities – and your efforts could literally save lives! Please complete our volunteer form if you are interested in supporting our efforts.
Information about imaging for fat patients
For Patients: MRI Access for Higher-Weight Patients
For Providers: Providing X-Rays, MRIs and CT Scans to Higher-Weight Patients