Hospital Website Accessibility in India: What IS 17802, WCAG and the Draft 2026 Rules Mean for Your Site and App

Think about who visits a hospital website. An elderly father checking OPD timings on a small phone. A patient with low vision trying to download a lab report. A caregiver who uses a screen reader. Someone with a tremor who can't tap tiny buttons.

These are not edge cases. For a hospital, they are everyday users. Yet many hospital websites in India still have booking forms that a screen reader can't read, PDFs that are just scanned images, and phone numbers hidden inside pictures.

Accessibility is now also a legal topic. India has had an accessibility standard for websites and apps, IS 17802, written into its disability rules since 2023. The Supreme Court has said accessibility norms must be mandatory, not optional. And in July 2026 the government published draft rules that would require websites and apps to publish an Accessibility Conformance Report.

This guide explains what applies, what's still a draft, and what a hospital or clinic should fix first.

Quick answer: Hospital and clinic websites and apps in India should meet IS 17802, the Indian standard aligned with WCAG, which was written into Rule 15 of the RPwD Rules in 2023. After a 2024 Supreme Court ruling, draft RPwD (Amendment) Rules, 2026 propose making specified requirements non-negotiable, with phased deadlines and a public Accessibility Conformance Report. They are not final yet, but the fixes (alt text, keyboard access, contrast, accessible forms and PDFs, captions) are worth doing now for patients anyway.

This is a plain-language guide, not legal advice. Take legal advice for your specific situation.

The legal background in plain language

The RPwD Act and Rule 15

The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 requires accessibility in information and communication technology. In May 2023, the government amended Rule 15 of the RPwD Rules, 2017 to say that websites, apps and ICT-based services shall comply with IS 17802 (Part 1): 2021 and IS 17802 (Part 2): 2022, published by the Bureau of Indian Standards. The CABE Foundation's summary reproduces the amended rule and explains that IS 17802 aligns with WCAG, US Section 508 and the European EN 301 549 standard.

The Supreme Court's 2024 judgment

In Rajive Raturi v. Union of India, decided on 8 November 2024, the Supreme Court held Rule 15(1) ultra vires the Act because, in its current form, it offered persuasive guidelines rather than the non-negotiable standards the Act requires. It directed the Centre to frame mandatory, enforceable rules. The Indian Express explainer summarises the ruling, and the full judgment is on the Supreme Court website.

The draft RPwD (Amendment) Rules, 2026

In July 2026, the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities published draft rules for ICT accessibility for public comment. According to ThePrint and Nasscom's policy note, the draft proposes:

1. Wide coverage: websites, mobile apps, software, digital content and electronic documents made available to users in India
2. Mandatory IS 17802 compliance for specified requirements
3. An Accessibility Conformance Report (ACR): published free on your website or app, in a human-readable format (HTML or accessible PDF) and a machine-readable one (JSON or XML), prepared or verified by accessibility testing experts, and refreshed after major changes and at least every two years
4. Phased deadlines by turnover: one year for establishments with turnover of ₹500 crore or more, 18 months for smaller ones, and full compliance within two years
5. A Grievance Redressal Officer at each establishment, with fines and other penalties for non-compliance

These are draft rules. As of 10 November 2026 they have not been finally notified, and the details could change. But the direction is clear.

Key takeaways

1. IS 17802, aligned with WCAG, has been the named standard for websites and apps in the RPwD Rules since 2023.
2. The Supreme Court wants accessibility norms to be mandatory and enforceable.
3. Draft 2026 rules propose a public Accessibility Conformance Report and phased deadlines.
4. The rules are still a draft, but the fixes help every patient today.

Why hospitals should move first

Hospitals have more reasons than most businesses to get this right:

1. Your users are more likely to need it. Older adults, people with chronic illness, low vision or limited mobility, and stressed caregivers all rely on clear, accessible pages.
2. The tasks are essential. Booking an appointment, finding an emergency number, reading a discharge summary or a lab report are not optional browsing.
3. Patient portals and apps hold critical flows. If a patient can't log in or download a report without help, they lose privacy and independence.
4. Trust. An accessible site signals that the hospital cares about every patient, before they arrive.

There's also a practical SEO side. Many accessibility basics, such as descriptive alt text, a clear heading structure, meaningful link text and fast, clean pages, are also good practice for search engines and AI search. Accessibility isn't a shortcut to rankings, but it rarely hurts them.

What IS 17802 and WCAG ask for, in practice

WCAG is built on four principles: content must be perceivable, operable, understandable and robust. The W3C's WCAG 2.2 is the latest version; IS 17802 is aligned with WCAG 2.1 at level AA. Building to WCAG 2.2 AA covers both.

Here is what that means for a typical hospital website:

1. Images. What to check: Meaningful alt text; decorative images marked as such. Common hospital problem: Doctor photos and banners with no alt text, or timings shown only inside an image.
2. Keyboard. What to check: Every menu, form and button works with Tab, Enter and Esc, with a visible focus outline. Common hospital problem: Booking pop-ups and date pickers that trap the keyboard.
3. Colour contrast. What to check: Text contrast at least 4.5:1 (3:1 for large text). Common hospital problem: Light grey text on white, white text on pale brand colours.
4. Forms. What to check: Every field has a visible label; errors are explained in text. Common hospital problem: Placeholder-only fields; "invalid input" with no detail.
5. Headings and structure. What to check: One H1, logical H2/H3, proper lists and tables. Common hospital problem: Headings chosen for size, not meaning.
6. PDFs and reports. What to check: Tagged, text-based PDFs or HTML versions. Common hospital problem: Scanned lab reports and price lists as images.
7. Video and audio. What to check: Captions and transcripts. Common hospital problem: Doctor videos with no captions.
8. CAPTCHA and OTP. What to check: An accessible alternative; enough time to enter codes. Common hospital problem: Image-only CAPTCHA; OTPs that expire in seconds.
9. Zoom and reflow. What to check: Page works at 200% zoom and on small screens without sideways scrolling. Common hospital problem: Fixed-width tables of doctor schedules.
10. Language. What to check: Page language set; plain wording; key pages in local languages. Common hospital problem: Medical jargon without explanation.

A 30-day fix-it plan for hospital websites

Week 1: Audit what patients actually use

List your ten most important pages and flows: home, emergency contact, find a doctor, book an appointment, departments, health packages, lab reports, patient portal login, contact and the app's main screens. Test each one with:

1. An automated checker (such as Lighthouse in Chrome or the free WAVE tool) to catch obvious errors
2. Keyboard only, with no mouse
3. A screen reader: NVDA on Windows, VoiceOver on iPhone or TalkBack on Android
4. Your phone at 200% text size

Automated tools find only part of the problems. Manual testing is essential.

Week 2: Fix the critical flows first

Start with what blocks a patient completely: the emergency number, appointment booking, login and report downloads. Fix form labels, keyboard traps, focus order, error messages and contrast on buttons.

Week 3: Content and documents

Add proper alt text to doctor and department images. Replace image-only timetables with real text or tables. Convert key PDFs (price lists, preparation instructions, consent information) into tagged PDFs or web pages. Add captions to videos.

Week 4: Process and publishing

1. Add accessibility checks to your design and development checklist, so new pages don't undo the work
2. Train the content team on alt text, headings and link text
3. Publish an accessibility statement with a contact for reporting problems
4. If the draft rules are finalised in their current form, you'll also need an ACR, so keep your test results organised now

Patient portals and hospital apps

Mobile apps are covered too. For Android and iOS apps, check:

1. Every button and icon has an accessibility label that TalkBack and VoiceOver can read
2. Touch targets are large enough for older users and people with tremors
3. The app respects the phone's text size and dark mode settings
4. Login and OTP screens work with screen readers and allow enough time
5. Lab reports open in an accessible format, not just as an image

If you're planning a new app, building accessibility in from the first design is far cheaper than fixing it after launch.

Accessibility and other hospital rules

Accessibility work sits alongside other obligations, not instead of them:

1. Data protection: accessible forms still need clear consent notices under the Digital Personal Data Protection Act. The Government's announcement of the DPDP Rules explains the phased timeline.
2. Ethical advertising: accessible marketing pages still need to avoid claims, testimonials and before-and-after images restricted by NMC rules.
3. Honesty: don't claim "fully accessible" or display a compliance badge unless your site has actually been tested. Overlay widgets that promise instant compliance rarely fix underlying problems.

What to ask your web development partner

1. Do you design and test to WCAG 2.2 AA (which covers IS 17802's WCAG 2.1 basis)?
2. Do you test manually with keyboards and screen readers, not just automated tools?
3. Will our CMS let editors add alt text, headings and captions easily?
4. How will you make lab reports and PDFs accessible?
5. Can you produce test documentation we could use for an Accessibility Conformance Report?

If the answers are vague, that's a signal. For more on getting the basics right, see our article on SEO best practices for web developers and our guide to building user-friendly medical portals.

How Pengwin Solutions helps

Pengwin Solutions designs and builds websites and apps for hospitals, clinics and other businesses, with accessibility built into the process:

1. Accessibility audits of websites, patient portals and apps against WCAG and IS 17802
2. Fixes to booking forms, navigation, contrast, PDFs and video captions
3. Accessible UI/UX design for new hospital websites and patient apps
4. Content team training and ongoing checks so new pages stay accessible

Explore our web development services, UI/UX design and healthcare digital services.

Frequently asked questions

Is website accessibility mandatory for private hospitals in India?

IS 17802 was written into Rule 15 of the RPwD Rules in 2023. In 2024 the Supreme Court found Rule 15(1) too weak because it read as guidelines, and directed the government to frame mandatory, enforceable rules. Draft 2026 rules propose doing that with phased deadlines. Hospitals should treat accessibility as a requirement and take legal advice on their specific position.

What is IS 17802?

IS 17802 is the Bureau of Indian Standards' standard for accessibility of ICT products and services. Part 1 sets out requirements and Part 2 explains how to determine conformance. It is aligned with WCAG and the European EN 301 549 standard.

What is an Accessibility Conformance Report?

It is a public document describing how far a website or app meets accessibility requirements. The draft RPwD (Amendment) Rules, 2026 propose that covered establishments publish one in human-readable and machine-readable formats, verified by accessibility testing experts.

Are the 2026 accessibility rules final?

No. As of 10 November 2026 they are draft rules published for public comment in July 2026. The final version and its dates may differ.

Do accessibility plugins or overlays make a website compliant?

Usually not on their own. Overlays can't fix missing labels, keyboard traps or inaccessible PDFs in your code and content. Proper design, development and manual testing are needed.

Does accessibility help SEO?

Indirectly. Alt text, clear headings, descriptive links and clean, fast pages help both users and search engines. Accessibility is mainly about patients, though, not rankings.

Make your hospital website work for every patient

Call +91 90326 18332, email hello@pengwinsolutions.com, or contact Pengwin Solutions for an accessibility audit of your hospital website, patient portal or app.