FAT people are Discriminated against at prime

I hear a unreasonable rage against owners of minivans will trigger that kind of test automatically!



snip...

Well Dr. Minivans, I suspect you must have bribed someone to get out of medical school, or did you get your shingle from a box of cracker jacks? They use the BMI criteria because 80% of folks who have sleep apnea tend to resemble a beached whale.

 

LOL. My s/n isn't "I_LOVE_ROAD_RAGE".

That knowledge came from a combination of my mom going through the tests and wearing the "gas mask", and all the safety meetings at work and all the sleep apnea information packets my company handed out. I also read about an OOIDA-backed lawsuit against the Minnesota DOT after they released some kind of "procedures manual" or something that would enable DOT to put a driver out of service if his neck circumference was too big, or using his neck circumference or diameter or something as a factor to use when considering putting him OOS. I think OOIDA ended up winning that one.

If I was trying to make that info seem like it was written by a doctor, I wouldn't have used words like "blubber-butt".

The circumference of the neck is the biggest contributing factors. You're right about that 80% thing, simply because if a person has lots of blubber around their neck, it's VERY likely they've got blubber everywhere else too.

Dr. Minivans, LOL. I've got this mental picture of some medical school dropout performing surgery in the back of a minivan now.

 

You don't know about the Minnesota Driver Fatigue Checklist?

Holy Cow!!! Man, you've been living underneath a rock!

Some total jerk in the DOT enforcement side came up with it to enforce driver fatigue rules despite what your logbook stated about your rest breaks - and it was total BS. He was trying to get it installed nation-wide. Both IA and IN were adopting it for use, but backed off after OOIDA went to court.

http://www.thetruckersreport.com/tr...75508-do-not-take-minnesota-state-police.html

They pulled over an OOIDA member who had a totally compliant logbook, just after he'd taken a 10-hour break. Told him they had a survey they'd like him to take... checked off his answers and put him out of service for being "fatigued." OOIDA sued the state in federal court, and won. The settlement threw out the checklist, and required the state to start doing things legally - and is still under court supervision. An important precident was set in a federal court that affirms that you still have 4th Amendment rights, even though you work in a highly regulated industry and your truck can be "inspected" by the law.

OOIDA is going back to court because the MDOT cops are up to their old tricks trying to "quietly" enforce that stupid checklist, despite the courts' agreement that compliance with the HOS rules is the only reliable way to "measure" fatigue.

I don't know about you, but OOIDA proved its worth to me by just this one deal.

http://www.ooida.com/Issues&Actions/Judicial/Fatigued_Checklist/MNOOS-index.shtml

 

Of course I knew about it. I mentioned it in my previous post! It's just been well over a year since I read about it in "The Trucker" and the details were sketchy.

Thanks for the refresher.

I do remember reading that in addition to the "survey" there was a list of things the DOT officer was supposed to look for, one of which was how thick his neck was. Plus there was a whole host of things that literally had NOTHING that could POSSIBLY have ANYTHING to do with a driver's level of fatigue.

The only ones I can remember specifically was whether he'd shaved his face, and whether the cab of the truck was messy.

It's good to hear OOIDA got that idiotic program shut down.

Here's the link to the "checklist". In the bottom right it asks for driver's height, weight and neck size.

http://www.mntruck.org/pdf/fatigueflier.pdf

 

Quite evident, the subject is discrmination, which means you have to treat everbody the same with or without doctors orders.

 

Sooooo, she'll have to take a sleep apnea test I suppose ?????

 

It's not discrimination. Prime drivers have two choices for their DOT physical. Every driver takes a survey about sleeping habits and general health, everyone's height and weight are taken, everyone has their throat/mouth/airway evaluated, and everyone's neck is evaluated...

From there the doctor makes a determination if a sleep study is in order.

Yes, more fatties than not are required to take the test... Duh, most of them exhibit the indicators of sleep apnea. I have met a few large guys who passes the sleep study and do not require the machine.

The rub here is that the skinny guys who have symptoms don't exhibit them in the exam so much as they do with the questionarre.. If they are intelligent to realize what is being asked, they can lie. Which is a risk for that individual...

I feel better, and sleep ALOT LESS. I totally feel like crap if I happen to sleep without my machine. Yes it's a minor inconvenience, but I can say I am addicted to it just by the difference it makes between using it and not using it.

Those of you think it's hogwash, read up on it... Those low oxygen levels are damaging your major organs. If you are heavy, dontcha think you've done enough damage with your weight?

Google weight discrimination... It doesn't fall under any disability law, and there have been many unsuccessful lawsuits.

 

Once again, the subject is discrimination.

 

So what? Its a safety-sensistive job, and carriers are completely within their rights to screen drivers for medical issues that affect their job performance. This is only one of the many conditions that can affect a driver.

 

Just recently on CNN a department store said it will not hire people that smoke because of high insurance payments. The trucking industry is next.