Sleep apnea, new job and med card

They would probably give you a 3 month medical card maybe 6 month. On a new CPAP user they like to see 30 days of usage to make sure your using it and that it's helping.

It's kinda grey area because you have to use it 4 hours a night to be compliant. When I got my CPAP I was between jobs and the sleep doctor said I needed 30 days usage before he would ok me to drive. Then the DOT doctor said it was his choice to ok me to drive or not. I told him I just started CPAP and had 30 days proof I was using it. The DOT doctor just wanted to see my record of usage. I think he gave 6 month card since I just started.

A CPAP machine has SD card that keep track of the hours used every night and AHI or sleep apnea Events per hour.. That's the data the DOT doctor wants to see. They want to see your AHI or Events per hour are 4 or less and you use it at least 4 hours a night. I have sever sleep apnea and the CPAP does work. I say said when I first got it, I had to learn how to breath again was only way to describe it. I'm less then 1 Event per hour now most night. When I renew my medical card now they want to see 1 year of data. I think other drivers on here said the doctor only ask for 6 months data. So it kinda grey area. I remember reading Prime Inc had their new drivers data was being checked everything day. That was they could keep driving as new CPAP user as long as they used it every day vs waiting 30 days like I did. If you just get stated on CPAP they probably give you 30 day card just so you come back and they can see your using it and it's helping by lowering you numbers. It might take 30 days to get sleep apnea number down to 4 or less.

 

Did you tell the DOT doctor?

 

I think, if you have sleep apnea, you get a med card that requires you to use a CPAP. And, the CPAP machine has to have some accessible log showing you are actually using it.
That's the jest of what others have said.
I had a sleep study done a couple years before I started driving. Long story short, I'd been in a depression for several years and Doc wanted to see if perhaps I had apnea, which could be a significant contributing factor to depression. I, fortunately, don't have apnea, but because I had the study, I had to provide the results to them to show I didn't.
PS. I finally got through my depression. Once again, long story short, it was a situational thing, once Imwas finally able to,change the situation, the depression left. Thank God! Depression sucks!!! (I tried a couple different meds. They made me feel OK with being depressed, but didn't actually help with the depression itself. So, didn't stay on them too long.)

 

Resmed CPAP machine have SD card that you can pop out to read the data. They also have app for phone you can see your data every night and it have sleep report data also. It has cell phone data but into the CPAP so I can up load the data.

I have not been keeping up on lated cpap machines. I think Phillips CPAP use Bluetooth to cell phone to their app to see the data. All CPAP should have SD card as minimum. The problem I always have is the DOT doctor don't have computer program to read the SD card. Having a app that you can print the report yourself or email is a big help

 

Resmed has an app and you can send a readout to the doctor.
App is great, it even tells you if you have a good seal.