Do you have medical equipment that that is no longer of any use to you ? You can donate it to individuals who cannot afford to purchase it, making a positive impact on their lives.
It is easy enough to donate your equipment directly to individuals online, or to donate to organizations that will then effectively pass on your donation to individuals who need it.
This article is a straightforward compilation of places, groups and online platforms where you can donate medical equipment.
Where to donate medical equipment ? You can donate medical equipment to –
- State Assistive Technology Projects
- state online equipment exchanges
- reuse centers
- community loan closets (state and local) and bikur cholim
- non-profit charities
- thrift stores
- medical equipment refurbishment projects
- faith-based organizations
- local churches
- senior centers
- veterans centers
- private individuals on classified listing websites and social media platforms
Contents Overview & Quicklinks
Donating medical equipment and other used medical equipment to State Assistive Technology Programs
Donating medical equipment to refurbishing and reuse Centers
Donating medical equipment to Centers for Independent Living
Donating medical equipment to Loan Closets
National and international organizations which accept durable medical equipment donations
Online listing sites where you can donate medical equipment near you
Donating medical equipment in your neighborhood
Organizations near you which may know where to donate medical equipment
Donating medical equipment to Assistive Technology Programs
Assistive Technology Programs (AT Programs) – their purpose is to expand the accessibility to assistive technologies, including durable medical equipment, within a state. This initiative is particularly directed toward three primary groups –
- for individuals with a low income
- individuals with disabilities
- the elderly
State AT Programs increase access to equipment having –
- equipment lending libraries
- online equipment exchanges
- demonstration centers
- reuse and refurbishing centers
When you donate your medical equipment to your state’s AT program, you’re enabling it to have a broader reach, with the possibility of being lent to multiple users over time, creating a lasting impact.
If you would like to explore the possibilities of donating to your State AT Program, click on your state in the lists below, and you will be taken to your state program website.
Donating medical equipment to Refurbishment and Reuse Centers
Choosing to donate your respiratory equipment to a medical equipment refurbishment or reuse center is another excellent choice.
Both types of organizations implement programs to redistribute donated items, which frequently benefit individuals in need.
Usually, the equipment is furnished to individuals either without any cost or for a very modest fee.
There are medical equipment refurbishing centers that function as businesses, rather than as nonprofits, but they frequently offer the equipment for sale at a very reasonable price.
You can also inquire whether their primary goal is profit, or if your medical equipment will be given free of charge to someone in need, or sold at a minimal cost.
At reuse centers, the norm is to receive and redistribute used equipment in its current state, without undertaking any refurbishment or related procedures on the items.
Donating medical equipment to Centers for Independent Living
If you’re looking to specifically help individuals with disabilities through your donation, it might be worth considering donating to a Center for Independent Living, as they –
“provide independent living services for people with disabilities. CILs are at the core of ACL’s independent living programs, which work to support community living and independence for people with disabilities across the nation based on the belief that all people can live with dignity, make their own choices, and participate fully in society. These programs provide tools, resources, and supports for integrating people with disabilities fully into their communities to promote equal opportunities, self-determination, and respect.”
Source : https://acl.gov/programs/aging-and-disability-networks/centers-independent-living
Medical equipment loan closets are commonly run by Center for Independent Livings (CILs) to assist their members. You can inquire if they would appreciate your medical equipment donation.
To locate a center for your donation in your area, take a look on this website.
Donating medical equipment to Medical Equipment Loan Closets
Medical equipment loan closets are an exceptional community asset, that offer an additional opportunity for donating medical equipment, and helping others in need.
Usually, a medical equipment loan closet provides loans of durable medical equipment items to members of the community in their area, and this service is often offered free of charge. Typically, seniors and individuals with disabilities are the main beneficiaries.
The terms and conditions for each loan closet may differ, but generally, they do not require payment except as a deposit for larger more expensive equipment, such as patient lifts and hospital beds. This deposit is refunded upon the equipment’s return.
Interested in locating a medical equipment loan closet?
In my articles, I use the following strategy, which has proven to be relatively successful –
- I start by doing 4 searches online – “medical equipment loan closet + your location”, “medical equipment lending closet + your location”, “medical equipment lending bank + your location”, or “medical equipment bank + your location” – I try each of these in my web browser in the order I have written them until I get a result
- if the search proves unsuccessful, which is not uncommon, contact your county’s Area Agency on Aging. These agencies support individuals aged 60 and above, as well as their families and caregivers, in accessing community services.– check for your county agency with the agency locator tool here
- Still no luck ? I’d go have a discussion with your town or city council, human resources, or seniors department. Inquire whether they operate a medical loan closet for the local community, or if they’re familiar with any others that do
- do a follow-up search for medical equipment refurbishing centers and ask if they can guide you to any loan closets close to your location
- another great resource for finding community loan closets are Lions Clubs, Rotary Clubs and American Legion Posts. They have vast networks of clubs and posts, some of which quite often run medical equipment loan closets for the benefit of their local communities. So contact those in your area and ask if they’re familiar with any who have a loan closet
To locate a Lions Club in your area, check out my article here – How To Find A Lions Club Near Me ? A Very Quick Illustrated Guide
To locate a Rotary Club in your area, check out my article here – How To Find A Rotary Club Near Me ? A Very Quick Illustrated Guide
Bikur Cholim or Medical Equipment Gemacht – these are Jewish medical equipment loan closets available to members of the Jewish community.
These loan closets will be very happy to receive any medical equipment to help those in need in their community.
You can make inquiries at your local Jewsih Senior Center, synagogue, or take a look on the Chesed Match website.
National and International organizations which accept donations of medical equipment
Goodwill
To donate your medical equipment, locate a store near you and give them a call. You can do that with this link – https://www.goodwill.org/locator/
Salvation Army
To donate your medical equipment, click on the following link – https://satruck.org/
EasterSeals
To locate your local affiliate, use this link – https://www.easterseals.com/connect-locally/
The Partnership for Quality Medical Donations
The website donating page is here – http://www.pqmd.org/pillars/donation-guidelines/
Project Cure
Donating is here – https://projectcure.org/donate-supplies-equipment
REMEDY – Recovered Medical Equipment for the developing World
To donate medical equipment to REMEDY, go to this web page – https://www.med-eq.org/Login/form.aspx?type=donate&quick=1
Advocates for World Health
Donating durable medical equipment is here – https://awhealth.org/donate-medical-equipment/
Esperenca
To donate medical equipment, go here – https://www.esperanca.org/donate-supplies/
MedShare
Got to the MedShare website to donate medical equipment here – https://www.medshare.org/
HERO Healthcare Equipment Recycling Organization
You can find about donating medical equipment on their website – https://www.herofargo.org/wp-content/uploads/IndividualSupplies.pdf
MedWish
Donations are here on their website – https://www.medwish.org/give
Global Links
To donate your medical equipment, go to this website page – https://www.globallinks.org/our-work/programs/medical-surplus-recovery-program/individual-and-community-surplus-recovery
Global Mobility USA
You can contact them at this web address – http://www.globalmobilityusa.org/equipment-and-in-kind-donations
Medical Bridges
This is the medical equipment donation page on their website – http://www.medicalbridges.org/donate/medical-supplies-and-equipment
Online listing sites where you can donate medical equipment near you
This is my favored method for donating if I don’t have a lot of time to do research, or don’t want to have to go too far to hand over my medical equipment donation.
Having said that, for added security while making an online donation, you might want to consider any these precautions –
- in the posting/advertisement description for your medical equipment, be sure to indicate that it’s donated “as is,” and you won’t be held liable for any issues after the transfer
- for the sake of safety and privacy, especially if there’s an elderly individual at home, avoid having the donation recipient come into your home for the pick-up
- for the pick-up, opt for a public location, and if you’re feeling unsafe, think about bringing someone else along
- to prevent spam inundation, don’t use your personal email on classified listing sites like Craigslist – create an email address exclusively for your ad
You can donate items on –
- Craigslist.com
- UsedHME.com
- Nextdoor.com
- Facebook.com
- Freecycle.org
- OfferUp.com
You will find my short illustrated guides on how to donate new, or used, medical, equipment on each of the following platforms –
Craigslist.com – “How To Donate Used Medical Equipment Near Me On Craigslist ? An Illustrated Guide”
UsedHME.com – “How To Donate Used Medical Equipment Near Me On UsedHME ? An illustrated Guide”
Facebook.com – “How To Donate Used Medical Equipment Near Me On Facebook ? An Illustrated Guide”
Freecycle.org – “How To Donate Used Medical Equipment Near Me on Freecycle.org ? A Very Quick Illustrated Guide”
Nextdoor.com – “How To Get Free Medical Equipment Near Me On Nextdoor.com ? A Quick Illustrated Guide”
OfferUp.com – No need for an article on this, as there is a very good video showing how to use OfferUp, see below.
Donating medical equipment in your neighborhood
If you’re tired of staring at a computer screen to find things, and would like to do it in person, why not pop into some of the following locations in your neighborhood –
- Local Hospitals
- Emergency rooms
- Thrift stores
- Senior Centers or Elderly Day Care Centers
- Veterans Centers
- Retirement Homes
- Your local council Seniors’ Department – ask if they have a medical equipment loan closet
Organizations near you who may know where to donate medical equipment
Still looking for advice on where to donate ? Here are some organizations where you can get more advice –
Area Agency On Aging
For insights into services available to individuals over 60, contact your Area Agency on Aging in your community. This is where you’ll get valuable information about medical equipment loan closets and durable medical equipment that seniors often need.
To locate an Area Agency on Aging in your area – click here.
Social Services
Next, consider getting in touch with your Social Services department. They should have a thorough understanding of various charities providing programs and services, and could assist you in identifying could benefit from your medical equipment.
Faith-based Charities
Shifting our attention back to charitable programs helping those in need, the Catholic Charities and the Society of St. Vincent de Paul operate programs across substantial areas of the US.
They run programs assisting –
- low income families
- the homeless
- refugees
- victims of abuse
Both charities have chapters which run the programs in their area
To contact the chapters of these charities in your area, do an online search for “name of the charity + where you live”.
Local town hall or chamber of commerce
Head to your town hall and chamber of commerce to get more information about nonprofit organizations and charities that are dedicated to refurbishing and distributing durable medical equipment in your area. Don’t hesitate to talk to them.
Reasons why your medical equipment may not be accepted
Some of the reasons why your medical equipment isn’t being accepted may be –
- it may be too old
- it may be too roughed up
- it may require too much work to make it usable again
- used medical equipment will have to be sanitized, and some organizations don’t have the facilities
- used masks and tubes for oxygen equipment cannot be reused
- used medical equipment is no longer under warranty
- used raised toilet seats are often refused
- state laws regarding the reuse of certain medical equipment
Tax deductions on donations
Keep your receipt for any donations that you make to any charities, if you are hoping to get a tax deduction – the IRS will require the receipt for the item.
I’m Gareth, the author and owner of Looking After Mom and Dad.com
I have been a caregiver for over 10 yrs and share all my tips here.
