Traveling with medication and medical equipment
Find what you need to know about traveling with medicine and any necessary medical equipment, including using them during your flight.
Traveling with medication and medical equipment
Find what you need to know about traveling with medicine and any necessary medical equipment, including using them during your flight.
Medication
You can bring any medication with you in your carry-on bag. Never place medication in a checked bag, even if you don’t need it during your flight. If you’re asked to gate check your carry-on bag, remove your medication before giving your bag to an agent.
Please note: We cannot store any medication in United fridges or coolers. If you need to keep your medication cold during your flight, you’ll need to follow TSA policy for ice and ice packs.
Medical equipment
Most of the time you can bring medical equipment with you on your flight. Some pieces of medical equipment have specific rules for transporting them and using them during your trip. Learn more about traveling with any of the following:
If you’re traveling with a different kind of medical equipment, how you fly with them depends on the type of equipment it is.
Portable dialysis machines
You can’t use portable dialysis machines during your flight. You can bring one as a carry-on for free if it meets TSA guidelines and fits in the overhead bin. If it doesn’t fit, you can still transport it as a checked bag for free.
Other equipment
You can bring other medical equipment not listed here if it fits under your seat or in the overhead bin. Whether you can use your equipment during your flight depends on a few factors:
- If your equipment is electronic and has a label or other documentation stating it meets FAA safety standards it can be used on the plane.
- If your equipment uses cellular transmission, like a wireless glucose monitor, it can’t be used.
- If your equipment uses Bluetooth or Wi-Fi, they can be used. However, Wi-Fi is not available on every flight.
If you need to use your medical equipment during your flight, we must confirm it meets safety standards at least 48 hours before. Call our Accessibility Desk at 1-800-228-2744. You may be asked to provide information to help us verify your equipment. If you can’t provide this information, we may need to call the manufacturer, which will take additional time.
Traveling with medical conditions
For the safety of our crew and passengers, we have some rules for traveling with medical conditions. For more information, visit our Traveling with Medical Conditions page.