I have been noticing smaller stores and banks in the area I live in have posted signs stating that by order of the State of NY Health Department use of restrooms are not allowed by customers.

I've tried searching NY State's BOH website for info but cannot find any. I remember reading a while back that some folks were petitioning their state to get bracelets (similiar to medical emergency bracelets) to wear that would force these 'establishments' to allow them use of the bathrooms.

Does anyone have any info on this? I had to wait in line for the bank recently and needed a bathroom badly (IBS-D, 10+ years). When I complained to the teller, she just pointed to the sign. Good thing a fast food restaurant was next door.

Thanks for any info!

Frustrating, isn’t it? I spend the day in fear whenever I have banking to do, and don’t know if I’ll be able to do it until I get there. If the line is too long, I won’t risk it. I also rarely go to stand-alone stores or ones in strip malls because they rarely have bathrooms. I will only shop at big malls. Just the knowledge that a bathroom is near makes a big difference in my stress level.

It’s very confining and I really feel like a shut-in at times. It’s also not fair to my husband, because I have to send him out alone to do grocery shopping, get dinner, etc. because I don’t want to risk being away from a bathroom. I can understand small stores not wanting to have bathrooms because there are liability issues, plus if they just let anyone use it there’s more temptation for shoplifters, etc. But I don’t see why banks can’t have them. After all, sometimes it takes a while to do banking if you’re applying for a loan or something.

That bracelet idea sounds good. I live in Canada and I’ve never heard of anything like that. Maybe I’ll look into it!

I'm still looking for info, and have a call in to the NYS Board of Health. If I find out any info, I'll post it here for you. Maybe it will help you in Canada.

:angel: