New FMCSA advisory to medical examiners on sleep apnea.

Check out OOIDA: http://www.ooida.com/ReviewDoc/

 

our weight doesn't necessarily have anything to do with it. There is a company that provides training to dot registered examiners that is in the pockets of the sleep apnea industry. They are tellinYg their client that they must test if certain parameters are met (weight, neck size etc). This is simply not true. The FMCSA has issued a statement that they will go though the formal rulemaking process as required by Congress before issueing anything on sleep apnea. As far as getting a second opinion this is from the OOIDA website:
Example of what is permitted:
A driver goes to doctor A. The doctor refuses certification for some reason based on the doctor’s judgment. The driver believes this is not correct and goes to doctor B for a second opinion. Doctor B finds no reason to refuse certification based on the doctor’s judgment. This driver is correctly certified for the time indicated by doctor B.
Example of what is illegal - (“doctor shopping”)
Driver goes to doctor A. Driver either tells the doctor about a condition the driver has which is disqualifying, or the doctor determines the driver has a condition which is disqualifying. The driver then goes to doctor B. At doctor B the driver lies about the driver’s medical status by not disclosing the known medical condition. This can happen by not honestly filling out the form or by lying to doctor B when asked about the condition. This example is illegal and not advisable.
Do NOT lie!
When a driver goes to more than one medical examiner, this shows up in the certified medical examiner database. It will be reviewed. If the driver gave the same information to both examiners it is not a problem and the most recent exam will be the drivers current status. If the information the driver provided is not consistent this will be followed up on and if found to be dishonest can result in disqualification.