Medical Card Changes - US Xpress

I believe it is mostly a scam and all people will fail the test. I am not very smart, but I can not understand when they hook all those wires up to you and you are in a strange place yet you are told to sleep normal what the heck is normal about that? My four cents.

 

Wires hooked up to you isn't going to cause you to stop breathing in your sleep. But I don't blame you for being skeptical because of the fraud that has been going on in the industry

 

It makes,you uncomfortable while,you sleep. Also eencourages you to sleep on your back, which easily increases AHI

 

The big problem is many of them get kick backs from many companies and that ups their yearly income big time. They're doing about the same thing our politicians are doing, getting rich off of us.

There was a scandal in our small home town recently about the pharmaceutical peddlers. We had one doctor who would not see them accepting their gifts, when they entered his office they were told the doctor does not have time to meet with you, you need to be on your way. This doctor put the patients first. Yet all the others always met with them accepting any handouts and or rewards. And of course the patients are the losers.

I've been told that the other doctors have changed after word got around. Now if they meet with them they never do so in their offices, for they quickly send them on their way right in front of their patients.

 

This is also the problem with the large workplace clinics (Concentra, etc.) they are pushing sleep studies. My family physician no longer does DOT or FAA because of the hassle of it, plus, out of 5,000 patients (large family practice of 10 MD's, 6 PA's), they have maybe 30 patients that they have to do it for.

Friend just got his CDL, they were referred by the school to Concentra for physicals, of the 20 students in his class, 13 went to Concentra, 10 were recommended for sleep studies, the others all went some place else for their DOT. The clinic that I went to in Denver recently, he gave me a 1 yr card, but it was because of BP meds, and nothing else. I'm 5'11", 245, he didn't say a word about a sleep study, just did the physical, went over my meds, made a couple of suggestions and sent me on my way with my new 1 yr card.

His comment on the sleep study/BMI issue was the same as my primary care, they don't put a whole lot of stock in it. They both felt it's not an overly accurate measure of recommendation. Not to mention there can be so many other factors that play a part in drivers getting proper rest.

Heck, I spent three night in the truck this past week, the first night I couldn't sleep with a darn (cold night in Wyo., gusty wind, truck idling next to me, his air went off every 4 minutes), since I was on 8/2 split, I probably slept 4 hours. The second night was better, I was at the Walmart in Ft. Collins. Didn't need to idle, the truck on my left didn't idle, the one on my right had a APU. Again, an 8/2 split, slept probably 6.5 hrs, within minutes of my head hitting the pillow I was out. The next night, was a 9/1 split in Sidney, out of 8 in the sleeper, probably slept 6.5. BTW, even when I'm home, I rarely sleep more than 6.5 hrs. According to some, that means I need a sleep study. No, it's just my bodies normal pattern, generally 6.5 to 7 hrs sleep Sun. night to Friday night, and come Sat. night/Sun. morning, the wife and I snuggle down for a solid 9 to 10 hrs of sleep.

 

My Dr's office has a large sign, reps will be seen by the Dr's on Wed. only between 1pm and 2 pm, they are welcome to come in any other time and restock their samples, but they are not to speak with the Dr's unless spoken to first, if they violate the rule, they are asked to leave. The entire office is closed from 1 to 2 daily for lunch, so the reps all take turns fighting over who will buy lunch for the office so they can give their pitch. That lunch happens only on Weds. Years ago my Mom worked there doing the insurance coding and billing. The reps had a sign up sheet for who would bring lunch and when. With a practice as large as this (10 MD's, 6 PA's, 20 Nurses, 8 office staff) it got to be quite expensive for the reps, and the funny part, most of the DR's wouldn't even come in for the lunch, so it all went to the staff.

 

9/1 split..?

Did you mean 9 sleeper 1 off duty together, or that you did sleeper for 9, drove, then took 1 hour off? I'm almost positive that you still need 2 hours Off even if you took longer than 8 hours off.

 

Drove for 4.5 hrs, unloading was 2 hrs, showed 1 hr of it in the sleeper, then drove for 5.5 hrs and took 9 hrs off, 1 off duty 8 sleeper. Was log checked two days later, nothing was said.

 

Got lucky that not legal.