Medical card/physical question

Doctors are required by law to release medical records to patients. They will mail,fax, or even email it to you. They don't have a choice to not do it.

 

Unless something new has started in this so-called"Computerized database" For Physicals- Your Current physical that you took AND PASSED is still good./

 

First this is NOT a so called database it is VERY REAL! 2nd the first physical might no longer be good. I'm not trying to imply it is or not. I'm saying if an examiner has determined a driver unfit and entered this into the system this newest entry might nullify that first physical. Be careful giving drivers such advice, since 2014 the FMCSA has changed these rules. I am trying to find out now the answer to a very important question. It will be a few days before I can get an answer. My question is --- Does the last physical in the database override any active physicals, and if it does and no card as a result of said physical is issued can that driver still drive? When I get an answer from the FMCSA I will place it here. At this point I honestly don't know!

 

OK, it looks like most of my comments are (currently) in error based on this. However in June 2018 this thing starts getting really tight. I wish this webpage could get pinned somewhere because it has most of the answers on it.

 

Yes, this whole medical issue is in the change process. Because of this what might be true today will not be true next week. This can lead to confusion and serious problems. While I miss the overall trucking world I don't miss the rules changes I have seen going all the way back to the HOS changes in the 90s.

 

It's protected by HIPPA. If for example I found you specifically and tried to call your health providers for more information based on whatever you put online in general talk, like i had a heart attack 3 years ago etc. HIPPA will allow any health provider to tell me to stuff it and go away because you did not fill out a form specifically authrozing me to gain access as per HIPPA.

Now that we got that out of the way, should you do some research into my own challenges you will note that I talked about certain health issues that are life changing and I don't feel any threat from people around the world reading about this as related to trucking and partly related to what is possible in pain management which is something I have learned a great deal about over the years. HIPPA allows all of my doctors (I have about 15 in total that takes me a few years to visit them all) to tell anyone other than my ex to go away, they get nothing in way of information.

If a doctor is being particularly picking or even more anal (I really hate this term, but there is no other real word for it) painting you into a paper work corner hoping you will not be able to gain documentation. I have the ability in a week to gather all papers on me that is current going back a decade and bury any doctor in it. The stack of them will be about 2 inches thick. But I am not going back onto the big road so that is not a problem.

Something happened between you and this doctor. And to me it's not going well. I ran into that problem once in my lifetime and that was with Covenant. Being a deaf trucker I have to show the audiology chart for my hearing to show it's within DOT regs as far as 500, 1000 and 2000 hertz is concerned. I know where my hearing quits approx 4200 hertz at 100 db. I can paper prove that my hearing qualifies. But this doctor insisted on a whisper test for me in a room with 50 people talking and that's not going to happen. So FMCSA reviewed my files and ruled in covenant's favor saying they can be strict as they like medically. I am over it. As it turned out they would not have been a good outfit for me long term.

IF you intend on finding a doctor who will give you a DOT 2year or whatever it is everyone is after, don't go to too many at once, that is a form of doctor shopping and does not reflect well on you. Especially if you do have a existing medical problem not being discussed which is a disqualifier potentially and can be detected by a DOT doctor in the office.

There is no point talking about this further without general information on what is your medical situation because there are many different problems people can have medically that will impact trucking. IF you can get a card at all.

Finally but not last. Don't stress about people getting to you specifically on the internet. The Law Enforcement has the ability should there be certain strict standards met to summons both the ISP you are paying for internetservice and also Google or whatever service you used to access these forums or any place on the internet. All computers connecting has two sets of numbers and all can be trace to you. Even if you used a proxy or Tor etc. It can all be traced. If the Law became interested in you because you made threats against the President or something stupid online. Follow me?

I don't worry about it too much. But I keep it generalized and not too specific. I get certain medicines from certain places and I will never talk about those online with the exception of walmart which I do not ever plan on getting medicines again in my life time. (They broadcast the drug that is a target of addicts and predators....)

I hope this post helps settle you down some. Let's hear it. But don't be too specific. Something happened to cause your picky doctor to get really picky. Until we understand what it might be then it's hard being vague.

 

I think the medical world has turned into a little bit of a monster. Going after people with expensive equiptment and procedures for suspected sleep apnea because they are large people. I think it's flat silly. However if there is a problem it can be looked into legitimately. But the last 9 years or so, the more grotesque medicine has gotten under the recent Obama administration and other push to weed out even the slightest flaw among drivers it's gotten out of hand completely.

No human is going to be perfect. And if we ever do start to create them, God will be very angry with us for becoming .. Him. THAT I think I would not want any part of whatsoever.

There is a large drain among the aging drivers as body parts wear out, defects increase in age, wear and tear etc (Im one of them) and overall gentrification of industry whereas the birthrate either fails to keep up without overreliance on immigrants or perhaps the young ones see trucking as a form of sweat shop slavery trying to make a living on no money at .30 a mile. (It is actually....) and so forth. For every one of me that made it this far in life I can think of dozens who did not survive their work in big rigs. I think of them now and then even though I don't know them from adam most of the time.

 

Just for the record. This has been spoken about in these forums many times. There are exceptions to the medical privacy laws. Regulatory compliance is one. YOU CAN NOT HIDE MEDICAL ISSUES THAT EFFECT YOUR FITNESS TO DRIVE BEHIND MEDICAL PRIVACY LAWS.

 

I hear you.

If there is a actual medical issue disqualifying you from DOT and actually being able to be allowed to drive a Semi or other regulated activity, you are disqualified.

If you think DOT was a challenge, try the Pilot's Medical. Things that could be brushed off in DOT exams will not fly through a Pilots medical. Especially anything to do with mental health or the heart and it's systems.

What the OP was worried about talking about his personal issues online for the world to see. My post was to show that most HIPPA laws protect the privacy of his records. It's one thing to be vague. but there is no point in talking unless there is something that is actually potentially disqualifying.

I lean towards him being too sick to be allowed a DOT medical card for whatever reasons unknown. Doctors generally do not get particular or demanding unless there is actually something to deal with.

It is said often in this forum that if you waited until page two or three, additional facts will come out and we all will go aha, this is the real story or facts... then go to work. But in this case, the OP chooses not to reveal anything and frankly I have nothing to work with. There is no point in spectulating or trying to understand something without good information.