Sleep Apnea

It is becoming a larger issue. The major carriers recognize this and are much more likely to hire you if you are honest , bring all your documentation, and use your machine. Lying will get the best driver fired. Most will require your condition be listed on your long form medical card, so there is really no reason or way to lie if you have already declared. If you use the search feature and look for sleep apnea you can find many posts discussing it. The issue is there is probably somewhere around 25-40% of OTR drivers with sleep apnea, most undiagnosed, and soon those drivers will be forced to be tested and treated if characteristics of sleep apnea present themselves (weight, neck size, etc).

Raid3r

 

You need to find out what the company policy is for dealing with Sleep Apnea. I personally give the company a compliance letter from a Board Certified Sleep Doc. As far as I am concerned they should not get any raw data. You also need to have a machine that will give you mask leakage rate, and AHI. This makes it easier for the doc to know if your machine is working for you. Right now the only data required by DOT is your pressure number and time on pressure. However, it is my opinion that in time you will need all 4 numbers.

Also there are some machines that do not work real well in the truck. Most of the problems involves retention of compliance data. If you have further problem please look at awake.truckersforacause.com. Also you must know that if you have a problem with data, you could be off the road for a period of time. It could be from 7 to 14 days

Hope this helps
Gary

 

You need to tell them when you do the phone application. You'll have to have an inverter to run the machine unless they have come out with a DC powered one. If the company you are applying to does not allow inverters then of course you can't go there.

The first question out of your mouth when doing the phone application is: Do you allow (insert what size in wattage you need) inverters or do you have an APU and after either question add the words I must have a CARP machine to sleep with due to SA and it's on my Medical long form.

That is the most important question even over how much do you pay!

You'll have to hire on with someone that has a good idle policy or APU's. You're already being limited to who you can go to.

To find out the wattage requirement is look on the machine on the back or bottom and you'll see the voltage and wattage of the device. DO NOT get an inverter with the exact wattage but at least 100 watts more than the out put of the inverter as it will over work it. If the wattage says 150 then get a 300 watt as they come in whole number units like 150,300,500 1000,1500, then they can change to like 1800 and you get the drift! Get the next highest size up and if you are planning on a microwave or coffee pot or something else I wouldn't get anything less than a 2000 watt but you just can't use all of them at the same time!

 

Now I know that we have to be careful about this. But if you are denied employment just because of Sleep Apnea. Then the company is in trouble if you want to push it. And that Companies are required as long as you keep your nose clean to make reasonable accommodations. At the Sleep Apnea and Trucking Conference we were told that ADA does not apply however, after some research we found that that may not be true.

There is going to be a conference sponsored by the Truckers For A Cause A.W.A.K.E chapter on this subject. It will be August 16. The call in numbers are available at awake.truckersforacause.com

Gary

 

They will have good info on what inverter to get and other info at the awake chapter also.
Many machines will not save data properly without the proper inverter, and you will be required to have a good record of use to keep your medical card.

 

You guys need to get a hold of Prime because they are refusing to hire drivers right now for a BMI of over 38 based on the fact they are the most likely to have sleep apnea. Scroll down to the bottom of this page on link and you will find the advertisement clearly states *BMI<39, that's a body mass index of less than 39%. The Max you can weigh and be hired by prime if your 6 foot tall is 280 LBS with your clothes on!

http://www.classadrivers.com/truckingcompanies.php?Cid=2221
http://www.nhlbisupport.com/bmi/

The reason I know this a driver at Prime told me on the radio he was being brought back to his terminal and fired for being too fat! Guy was about 300 lbs and around 6ft to 6ft2. I talked to the guy and didn't believe him so i called in to the recruiting phone number and the Prime rep verified it for me and said it was for saftey reasons, to keep people who might have sleep apnea out. That is a third party recruiter link that says it to, I refuse to put Prime's website up here because it's a bottom feeder INC that I hate but if you go there you will see it in writing.

 

Yes the ADA might just jump in here BUT again the real people who do the hiring of truck drivers who we all know as INSURANCE companies can and have made it very hard to abide by the ADA! All it takes is a little work in congress and what they can get passed will happen!

My advice to anyone with SA or ANY thing that could be covered by the ADA report it to the ADA! Be sure you have it well documented so everything you claim happened did! You already know you have a disability and as most of us with a disability even AGE knows to be ready for the nasty sound to hit the fan!

Remember if you don't rock the boat the rife might be worth it to you!

 

What I've been told is that the BMI requirment is due to a driver being grossly out of shape when their BMI is that high. Its more about the risk of coronary disease, stroke, diabetes. We've had a couple of drivers who have passed away in their trucks due to complications from morbid obesity.

That doesn't even sound right. There's more to it than that.

That's not even true. The company has decided to work with everyone who has sleep apnea. If you have diagnosed sleep apnea, are using a CPAP machine and can get a medical card, then you're eligable to be hired. If you come to orientation and exceed the parameters for the possibility for having undiagnosed sleep apnea - neck size, BMI, etc - then you won't be hired.

That being said, they are encouraging currently employed drivers to have themselves screened for sleep apnea - they're subsidizing the cost of the sleep study to the point it only costs us $150 if you don't have it. No penalty if you do have it - they'll spread the payments for a CPAP machine out over a number of settlements.

Whatever.