Handicapped parking tags seem nearly universal these days, leading me to wonder just how minor of a condition can one have and still get a handicapped tag? I’m sure the standards vary state by state, but can anyone give examples of minor conditions leading to the granting of a tag?
Well, where I live (Alberta), the Alberta Motor Association states that that get a disabled parking placards you must be unable to walk for more than 50 metres (150 feet), and get a physician/physiotherapist/occupational therapist to fill out a form attesting to this.
So any myriad of conditions could get you qualified, providing you can get a healthcare professional willing to state that it limits your ability to walk.
They also have two types of placards, for permanent disabilities (valid for five year), and temporary disabilities (valid for three to twelve months).
I could make a WAG that many people qualify as disabled who don’t “look” disabled, but really are. And also, some people may get a temporary placard but only actually need it for a shorter time period than they were approved for, and they continue using it just because they can.
Depends what you consider “minor,” doesn’t it? And yes, there are any number of conditions that would make a person who *appears * to be perfectly healthy eligible for a handicapped parking space.
Here in AZ a few years ago I had knee surgery and was on crutches for a while. I asked my doc about a temporary permit. He said I’d have to get the forms from the MVB, he’d fill them out, I’d send them in, and by the time I got the permit, I would not need it!
So, I didn’t. 
Respiratory conditions come to mind. Emphasema will get you a tag in most states.
I think really fat people can get them.
I know a woman with fibromyalgia, who has a permanent disability tag.
While I do believe that she is in pain, I know that she trots around department stores for hours at a time. She can definitely walk 150 feet with no problem.
[Moderator warning.
AnabolicDoberman. You have two weeks left as a Guest. IF you want to stay here, quit making jerkish comments in General Questions. If you have something factual to add to the discussion, do it. Otherwise, don’t post.
[/Moderator hat OFF]
samclem, moderator in General Questions.
I have a coworker who managed to get one after surgery on her wrist :rolleyes: She’s had it for, like, a year now. :mad:
Um, what was so jerkish about that comment? Obese people often can get handicapped license plates. And while a little crude, “fat” is not a totally offensive term. It’s not like he said “I think gross tubs of lard can get them.” Things get more hair-trigger around here every day.
Some stores have parking spots for pregnant women or include pregnant women under their definition of “disabled.” I don’t know how you’d go about getting a tag for that, but I’m guessing they have to in order to park there. Seems to me that an uncomplicated pregnancy is not a disability.
Even the most uncomplicated pregnancies can, during the last few months, make it difficult to be on one’s feet at all for more than brief periods of time. Besides, you cannot possibly tell by looking whether any particular expectant mother has a problem with high blood pressure, fluid accumulation in the legs and feet, or any one of a number of difficulties. I would imagine the process is the same as for any other temporary restriction: Doctor describes the type and expected length of the disability and the appropriate bureaucracy is followed.
How well do you know this coworker’s disability? I had a roommate who had surgery on her wrist, and also had a disabled parking tag. Her actual condition was rheumatoid arthritis, which was quite disabling in all of her joints. As a young person who hadn’t had the condition for very long, she didn’t look particularly disabled, but she was definitely limited in walking long distances.
Sorry for the double post, but also wanted to address the “expectant mothers” spaces. These are very different from disabled parking. These are a marketing program by the grocery stores, not a legal requirement at all. The stores in their wisdom have noticed that women with children make up a huge proportion of their business. It is a no brainer to offer an amenity that will get on their good side. If “young dudes on beer runs” were driving profits, no doubt the stores would add a drive through with bikini-clad cashiers.
My doctor is always encouraging me to exercise. Are there any conditions where a doctor would advise less walking as opposed to more walking? Just curious.
Gotta agree with davenportavenger here. Samclem, unless you are starting to classify morbid obesity as a protected class not to be talked about, then Doberman’s post was entirely appropriate.
Or have the rules changed again while I wasn’t looking?
I think the issue is that it’s not being “really fat” or “morbidly obese” that qualifies one for the tag. I’m “really fat” but I don’t have any problem walking two hundred feet (that’s the only qualifier in my state I can think of that one who is overweight might come close to qualifying for solely based on weight). My mother was and couldn’t because she also had congestive heart disease.
Now one might see a really fat/morbidly obese person and think that’s why they were issued the placard but their condition may or may not be caused by their weight. I know my mom’s wasn’t. She was relatively healthy until she suffered heart damage from viral pneumonia.
In which case **sam’**s reply should have been “I don’t think obesity qualifies for a tag,” not a smack-down.
I could be wrong, and I certainly don’t want to speak for samclem, but my initial reaction to Anabolic Doberman’s post was “wow, that’s a pretty rude thing to say” (and no, I do not have a weight problem, so I wasn’t offended personally). Perhaps he / she is trying to make an honest contribution and didn’t mean any offense, by it did come off rather snarky.
In New Jersey all it takes is for a doctor to sign off on it. My father-in-law is legally blind and has one. He can walk with no problem and can see well enough to be a computer programmer but he qualifies for handicapped parking. No he doesn’t drive, its my mother-in-laws car which she drives him in.
The pregnant/new mothers spots have no legal standing. They are unenforcable by the police. Go ahead and parked there. The worst thing that will happen is you will get attacked by a pack of hormonal preggers. On second thought, don’t park there.
A doctor can recommend a temp HC tag for pregnant women with complications. After the recent improvements with the state DMV it doesn’t seem to take very long to get them.
Yes, as a matter of fact. I have MS (multiple sclerosis) and am also obese. Any exercise (even walking more than a dozen yards) can exacerbate the MS symptoms far beyond any benefit from the exercise. My doctors and I all know I need more exercise, but the risk/benefits just don’t play out. I never know how my day will go - I can feel wonderful and full of energy when I get out of bed, only to be chair-bound an hour later, due to doing nothing more strenuous than showering (or cooking breakfast or washing clothes, etc.).
I don’t know if Carnac would consider my condition ‘minor’. I’m certainly not wheelchair-bound - in fact I only use a cane when I go where there are no walls, etc. to lean on (A little vanity maybe?)) But I am severly limited in what I can do, and I do use my handicap tag to make my life a little easier. (Ten parking spaces closer to the door can translate to 2 aisles in the grocery store, which is where I really need to use my limited energy.)
I do realize I’m less handicapped than those who must use a wheelchair and need the larger parking space, so I try not to use my tag all the time. I do admit to using it with glee on streets with parking meters - meters you don’t have to feed if you have a handicap tag.
PS. If anyone thinks I’m benefitting from my MS, I’ll gladly trade my handicap tag along with the MS and all of its symptoms for a healthy body.
Barracuda