Medical Certificates, what a joke!

When I hired on with my current company, I had a current med card that was 6 months old. The company had me see one of their doctors for a DOT physical, and got me a new laminated DOT med card stuck in a little ID wallet with a picture ID.

Crossed back into the US at Thousand Island a week ago and hand the customs cop my DL and passport. He then did something that I never seen a customs cop do...ask for my coloring book and med card. I didnt know that customs cops were DOT certified....

I hand him my fancy laminated med card with the picture ID in its ID wallet and coloring book, and he hands them to a guy in orange coveralls and a hardhat that had NYDOT on them. Dotcop says, "pull over there in between the orange cones" (whole lotta orange around here). And my truck gets fondled for an hour.

Anyways, they liked my laminated med card that was in a wallet with picture ID. They asked me why I dont smile in any of my pictures and I told them that I'm so ugly when I smile, my face hurts.

 

I have sleep apnea and use the cpap, how would they know when you go for your medical card?

 

Your required to list all known medical conditions................

But what you don't list they don't know about, that the big problem with the current system.

Mark

 

Mark, where can I get info on the body mass index?

Jim

 

Best to be honest I guess. The machine does make a big difference though.

 

What is this about a CPAC card? 1st I've heard of it and I just passed a DOT physical for school and I fully disclosed my use of one. No mention of a "card" has been made.

 

Just do a Google search of body mass index, it will come up.

Mark

With the current system, being honest is a joke. All the DOT doc knows is what you put on the form.

Mark

It's a card in the c-pap, that records info about how it's being used. DOT wants to make them mandatory for truck drivers.

Mark

 

many states do not require recording of cpap usage . my machine records usage every night and when requested you put the card in the card reader and download the info and send it out and the results are mailed to your doctor

 

Just had my med card updated, Dr took an hour to do it, checked me out good. He also told me DOT called him on a driver, his card was exspired....2 years ago.

 

I let mine expire, kept putting it off. I was pulled over and given a warning for it. The guy was pretty cool about everything and nothing else was out of order. So now I have a new one. I don't think my vision is as good as they said it was, had to squint a lot to see the tiny letters, but I'm still on the tiny letters so I think it's fine. I wouldn't drive anymore if I had something wrong with me that required falsifying the card.