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Medical gas categories and definitions

Learn about the building systems in health care facilities that must be designed to meet system Category 1 through 4 requirements as detailed in this code.

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NFPA 99-2018 – 4.1 Risk Categories

4.1 Risk Categories. Activities, systems, or equipment, shall be designed to meet Category 1 through Category 4 requirements, as detailed in this code.

  • 4.1.1 Category 1. Activities, systems, or equipment, whose failure is likely to cause major injury or death of patients, staff, or visitors, shall be designed to meet Category 1 requirements, as detailed in this code.
  • 4.1.2 Category 2. Activities, systems, or equipment, whose failure is likely to cause minor injury of patients, staff, or visitors, shall be designed to meet Category 2 requirements, as detailed in this code.
  • 4.1.3 Category 3. Activities, systems, or equipment, whose failure is not likely to cause injury to patients, staff, or visitors, but can cause discomfort, shall be designed to meet Category 3 requirements, as detailed in this code.
  • 4.1.4 Category 4. Activities, systems, or equipment, whose failure would have no impact on patient care, shall be designed to meet Category 4 requirements, as detailed in this code.

The category definitions apply to equipment operations and are not intended to consider intervention by caregivers or others. View examples of area/systems and their categories of risk below. A risk assessment should be conducted to evaluate the risk to the patients, staff, and visitors.

Example Category
  1. Ambulatory surgical center, 2 patients with full OR services
Category 1
  1. Reconstructive surgeon's office with general anesthesia
Category 1
  1. Procedural sedation site for outpatient services
Category 2
  1. Cooling Towers in Houston, TX
Category 2
  1. Cooling Towers in Seattle, WA
Category 3
  1. Dental office, no general anesthesia
Category 3
  1. Typical doctor's office/exam room
Category 4
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