About NOVA Medical Products
Founded in 1993 by Sue Chen with just three employees in a small space in El Segundo, California, NOVA Medical Products grew out of the Chen family's Taiwan-based durable-medical-equipment manufacturing to become one of the better-known independent U.S. brands in mobility and independent-living equipment. The company is now headquartered in Carson, California, with additional distribution centers in Georgia and Illinois, and designs canes, rollators, transport chairs, wheelchairs, bathroom safety equipment, and cushions.
NOVA built its identity around dignity through design in a category that historically prioritized function over form, adding decorator finishes to canes and colorful frames to walkers so that patients would actually use the equipment they needed. That approach shows up directly in our own testing: NOVA's Designer Walking Cane is the highest-rated cane in our walking canes review, and its Heavy Duty Walking Cane and Heavy Duty Bariatric Transport Chair both offer bariatric-rated capacity, 500 lbs and 400 lbs respectively, well above the category standard, without the extra bulk that usually comes with that rating.
Brand website: novajoy.com
What NOVA Medical Products makes
NOVA Medical Products's range runs wider than the products we review. The lines we know best from our own testing are marked with a star:
Canes & Crutches
Offset-handle, quad, and designer-pattern canes, including bariatric-rated models — featured on BestRatedDocs
Transport Chairs & Wheelchairs
Manual transport chairs including heavy-duty bariatric configurations — featured on BestRatedDocs
Rollators & Rolling Walkers
Wheeled walkers in a range of frame colors and sizes
Bathroom Safety
Bath chairs, stools, and commodes designed to reduce fall risk
Knee Scooters
Non-weight-bearing mobility alternatives to crutches
Cushions & Wedges
Seating cushions and positioning wedges for wheelchairs and transport chairs
Why we recognized NOVA Medical Products
The BestRatedDocs Top Brand recognition isn't paid for and can't be applied for. We award it to the brands whose products consistently stand out in our category reviews. NOVA Medical Products earned it on the strength of the products below, evaluated the same way every product on this site is: assessed against clinical criteria, verified specifications, and real-world user outcomes, and judged on merit.
NOVA Medical Products products we rated highly
NOVA Heavy Duty Walking Cane with Offset Handle
A 500 lb weight capacity that far exceeds the 250 to 300 lb standard for walking canes, yet the cane weighs only 1 lb thanks to reinforced aluminum construction. It carries the same offset-handle geometry NOVA uses across its clinical cane line and is FSA/HSA eligible as bariatric durable medical equipment.
Read the 7 Best Walking Canes of 2026 guide →
NOVA Medical Lightweight Adjustable Designer Cane with Offset Handle
The highest user rating of any cane in our review at 4.8 stars, with 32 decorator patterns that give users who resist the look of a medical device a design they're willing to carry every day. A 28 to 39 inch height range and an anti-rattle locking ring round out the fit.
Read the 7 Best Walking Canes of 2026 guide →
NOVA Heavy Duty Bariatric Transport Chair
A 400 lb weight capacity paired with patented locking hand brakes that provide both active braking and a positive lock for secure patient transfers. The reinforced aluminum frame keeps the chair at 27.75 lbs despite the heavy-duty rating, and flip-up armrests ease lateral transfers at bedside or in a vehicle.
Read the 7 Best Wheelchairs of 2026 guide →What earned NOVA Medical Products the recognition
- Founded in 1993 on the idea that mobility equipment could be designed with dignity, not just function, an approach still visible in the 32-pattern Designer Cane line
- Its Heavy Duty Walking Cane and Heavy Duty Bariatric Transport Chair both carry bariatric-rated capacities, 500 lbs and 400 lbs respectively, well above the category-standard 250 to 300 lb rating, without the added weight typical of heavy-duty designs
- The Designer Walking Cane holds the highest user rating of any cane in our walking canes review at 4.8 stars
- The transport chair's patented locking hand brakes give caregivers both active braking and a positive lock during patient transfers
- Multiple NOVA products in our reviews are FSA/HSA eligible as durable medical equipment