Donating your gently used respiratory equipment can make a significant impact on someone’s life. I am always looking long and hard to find the best deals on the medical equipment to meet my mom’s needs, and the prices really start to add up quickly, and for those without means used equipment in the form of donations is the only answer.
Do note that used masks and tubing are generally not accepted by charitable organizations for reasons of contamination.
This article is a straightforward list of places, organizations and online platforms where you can donate respiratory equipment.
Where to donate respiratory equipment ? You can donate respiratory 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 walking canes and other used medical equipment to State Assistive Technology Programs
Donating walking canes to refurbishing and reuse Centers
Donating walking canes to Centers for Independent Living
Donating walking canes 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 walking canes in your neighborhood
Organizations near you which may know where to donate walking canes
Donating respiratory equipment and other used medical equipment to Assistive Technology Programs
Assistive Technology Programs (AT Programs) are intended to increase the accessibility to assistive technologies, including durable medical equipment within a state, for the residents of that state, but with a particular focus on three main demographics –
- for individuals with a low income
- individuals with disabilities
- the elderly
State AT Programs to increase access to equipment will typically have –
- equipment lending libraries
- online equipment exchanges
- demonstration centers
- reuse and refurbishing centers
If you donate your respiratory equipment to your state AT program, the likelihood is that it will benefit way more than just one person, but will be lent to many users over time, making a maximum 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 respiratory equipment to Refurbishment and Reuse Centers
Donating your respiratory equipment to a medical equipment refurbishment or reuse center is also a superb option.
The two types of organization both typically have programs for the redistribution of their donated items, and more often than not, it is to individuals in need.
In general, the equipment is given to individuals either for free, or for a very low fee.
There are some medical equipment refurbishing centers which are businesses and not nonprofits, but they do also tend to sell the equipment at a very low price.
You can also always ask if they are just out to make a profit, or if your respiratory equipment will be either given for free to someone in need, or sold at a very low price.
Reuse centers tend to accept and redistribute used equipment “as is”, and will not do any kind of refurbishing etc. to the items.
Donating respiratory equipment to Centers for Independent Living
If you wish to expressly support the disabled with your donation, then I would think about 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
CILs have medical equipment loan closets to support their members, and you can ask if they would appreciate the gift of your respiratory equipment.
To locate a center for your donation in your area, take a look on this website.
Donating respiratory equipment to Medical Equipment Loan Closets
Medical equipment loan closets are an excellent community resource, and provide another terrific opportunity to donate new, or gently used, respiratory equipment, and to make a positive impact.
A medical equipment loan closet will typically lend items of durable medical equipment, usually for free, to residents in their “service area” (community) who need it – this usually means seniors and individuals with disabilities.
Each loan closet will have its own terms and conditions, but in essence they usually only ever charge money in the form of a deposit for larger items such as patient lifts and hospital beds, and the money is refunded on return of the item.
How to find a medical equipment loan closet ?
I do this on a regular basis for my articles, so here is an outline of the method I have found to have the most success –
- 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 I don’t come up with anything from the searches, which happens a lot, I’ll make inquiries with the county Area Agency on Aging – these agencies assist people over the age of 60, their families and caregivers to access the community services available to them – check for your county agency with the agency locator tool here
- have a chat with your town, or city council, human resources or seniors department, and see if they run a medical loan closet for the local community, or know of others who do
- do another search for medical equipment refurbishing centers and ask them if they know of any loan closets close to you
- Lions Clubs, Rotary Clubs and American Legion Posts are another great resource, and quite often have medical equipment loan closets for the benefit of their local communities
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 respiratory equipment to help those in need in their community.
You can make inquiries at your local synagogue, or find them on the Chesed Match website.
National and International organizations which accept donations of respiratory equipment
Goodwill
To donate your respiratory 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 respiratory 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 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, go here – https://www.esperanca.org/donate-supplies/
MedShare
Got to the MedShare website to donate here – https://www.medshare.org/
HERO Healthcare Equipment Recycling Organization
You can find about donating 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 respiratory 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 donation page on their website – http://www.medicalbridges.org/donate/medical-supplies-and-equipment
Online listing sites where you can donate respiratory equipment near you
I like this option the best if I don’t have a lot of time to do research, or don’t want to have to go a long way to hand over my donation.
With online classified listings, or on social media platforms, you get to choose in exactly which neighborhoods your post/advertisement will be seen, so you can do it right on your doorstep should you so wish.
Having said that, there are a few things to bear in mind when donating items online –
- you need to say in the item description that you are donating your respiratory equipment for free “as is”, and that you accept no liability for any future problems
- your priority, if you are looking after elderly loved ones at home, is to keep them safe, and to respect their privacy, so I wouldn’t let strangers into your home to collect the respiratory equipment
- I would arrange a meeting with the recipient of your donation in a public place, and if you feel vulnerable, go with a friend
- for ads that you post on classified listings, such as Craigslist, use a throwaway email address, to save your main personal email from a deluge of spam
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 respiratory equipment in your neighborhood
If you prefer doing things face to face, rather than online, why not pop into some of the following places in your area to see if they need respiratory equipment –
- 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 respiratory equipment
So, if nothing has worked so far, here are some organizations who may be able to tell you where you can donate your respiratory equipment –
Area Agency On Aging
Now, I know I have already mentioned the Area Agencies on Aging, but if you have not contacted them, you really should. Each Area Agency on Aging should know who is doing what in their area for the over 60s. They should be aware of any programs, refurbishing centers or loan closets.
To locate an Area Agency on Aging in your area – click here.
Social Services
Your local Social Services department should also be aware of programs run by charities, and who may be accepting donations of durable medical equipment, such as respiratory equipment.
Faith-based Charities
Faith based charities run programs all over the US to help those in need.
Two of the larger charities with chapters all over the US with multiple programs for those in need are –
The Catholic Charities
Society of St Vincent de Paul
Contact the chapters in your area, and see what each of them knows about any loan closets, or individuals who would appreciate your donation.
To locate the contact information for the chapters of these charities in your area, type the “name of the charity + where you live”, into the web browser of your choice.
Local town hall or chamber of commerce
Ask your town hall or chamber of commerce what records they have of nonprofit organizations, charities and community groups refurbishing durable medical equipment in your area, and then get in touch – they should all be glad and happy to hear from you.
Reasons why your respiratory equipment may not be accepted
These are just a few of the reasons why your respiratory equipment isn’t being accepted –
- perhaps it’s too old and beat up
- used respiratory equipment will have to be sanitized, and some organizations don’t have the facilities
- used masks and tubes cannot be reused
- used respiratory equipment no longer has a warranty
- state laws may or may not allow the reuse of respiratory 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.
