Certified Biomedical Equipment Technician (CBET) Practice Exam 2025 - Free Biomedical Equipment Technician Practice Questions and Study Guide

The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 99 sets rigorous guidelines for the safety and performance of medical electrical equipment, particularly in healthcare environments. One of the critical safety measures is ensuring that the resistance between the appliance chassis and the ground pin of the power plug is within safe limits to prevent electric shock hazards.

The maximum resistance of 0.50 ohms specified in NFPA 99 is important because it allows for a sufficient grounding path. This low resistance ensures that, in the event of a fault, electrical current can safely flow to ground rather than posing a risk to patients or operators. A lower resistance also helps guarantee the effectiveness of the grounding system under fault conditions, quickly triggering protective devices like circuit breakers or fuses to minimize potential harm.

To contrast, other values provided would not be suitable for maintaining necessary safety standards. For instance, 0.05 ohm is too low, as it may not account for practical installation variances, while 5 ohms and 50 ohms would introduce higher resistances that could impede safety measures significantly, increasing risk during electrical faults. Hence, the specification of a maximum of 0.50 ohms reflects the balancing of low resistance with practical application in healthcare settings.