Iowa interstate rest stops equipped with adult changing tables

ADAIR — A new federal law will soon require airports to update their restrooms to include adult-size changing tables.

According to K-F-F Health News, Iowa is among the states ahead of the curve, equipping its interstate rest stops now. For decades, the roadside rest-stop signs along Iowa freeways have depicted a person in a wheelchair to show they’re equipped for people with disabilities. Now, there is another graphic – a person behind a large rectangle – indicating the rest stop is equipped with a motorized, adult-size changing table.

Nancy Baker-Curtis, mother of 9 year-old Charlie – who has a disability that can leave him incontinent – says the larger tables are important for them both. “Oh my gosh. When you see that rest area sign and it has that height-adjustable, adult-sized changing table icon on it, it is honestly like a beacon of hope.”

 Until now, Baker-Curtis says, she was often forced to change Charlie in open spaces or on a restroom floor. An online map shows where fully equipped Iowa rest stops are, so travelers can plan their trips accordingly. Traditional, wall-mounted changing tables are shorter than two feet and only support up to 50 pounds. Baker-Curtis says that leaves out tens of thousands of Iowans who need the larger, height-adjustable table.

She is part of a group called “Changing Spaces,” working to expand the effort to 27 states and break what she calls an “inaccessibility cycle,” improving living conditions for people with disabilities and their caregivers.  “If you don’t have access to a restroom, you are literally tethered to your home and you’re living your life in two to three, maybe four-hour bursts of time before you need to be changed. That’s not sanitary.”

Data shows 60,000 Iowans five years and older fall into the category that requires the larger changing table. There are currently nine Iowa rest stops with adult-size tables. Plans call for a total of at least 20 in the next few years, at a cost of about $14,000 each.