New Therapy for Sleep Apnea and Snoring-CPAP Alternative

Medical Examiners Should Evaluate OSA Risks Despite Formal Rule Withdrawal.

“Medical certification determinations for such drivers are made by the examiners based on the examiner’s medical judgment rather than a Federal regulation or requirement.” FMCSA

Update on Sleep Apnea and Insulin Treated Diabetes Proposed Rules.

The joint FMCSA/FRA ANPRM Rule on Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) has been withdrawn.   According to FMCSA, after reviewing all the public comments there was not enough information to support moving forward at this time.   The purpose of the ANPRM was to evaluate the prevalence and consequence of moderate to severe OSA in safety […]

54,055 Registered Medical Examiners in 2017. Source: NRCME DATA Dashboard.

The Data Dashboard of the National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners (NRCME) showed a total of 54,055 total registered medical examiners for 2017. Of the total: 40% are Medical Doctors (33% or 17,750 MDs; 7% or 4,033 DOs) 33% are Nurses (22% or 11,894 Nurse Practitioners; 11% or 6,177 Advanced Practice Registered Nurses) 20% are […]

Trucking and Fatigue.

This article originally seen in Fleet Owner talked about how technology is used to measure and help combat fatigue.  Pioneering work has been done in the armed forces, sports with unlimited applicability in fields such as trucking and medicine, two professions where fatigue can play a significant role. Source: Trucking and fatigue | More accurate […]

Basic Med- FAA Alternative Medical Certification Program for Pilots Starts May 1, 2017

Starting May 1 2017, in lieu of getting a third-class FAA airman certificate general aviation pilots acting solely as pilot in command seeking to operate a small aircraft (weighing less than 6,000 lbs and carrying 5 occupants or less) in accordance with Title14 of Code of the Federal Regulations (14 CFR), § 61.113(i) may obtain […]

Mayo-ATRI NRCME Impact Survey: National Registry Sharply Criticised and CME Incompetence Ranked Third in Motor Carrier Concerns

The Mayo Clinic and the American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI) recently released a joint study to gauge the experience of medical examiners, and trucking industry professionals (drivers and motor carriers) with the National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners (NRCME).   The Mayo Clinic conducted the survey in the winter of 2016, two years after the […]

FMCSA Medical Examiner Bulletins 2016

12/19/16 5 year Mandatory Refresher Training –required under 49 CFR 390.111(a)(5)(i) When training becomes available FMCSA will provide refresher training online to medical examiners at no cost.  So keep your contact information current. Examiners who fail to complete the training will be removed from the National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners.  If you have any […]

Controversies Loom over 2016 Obstructive Sleep Apnea Recommendations

Timeline 3/8/2016:   After recommendations from the National Transportation and Safety Board the FMCSA and FRA jointly published an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Obstructive Sleep Apnea.  The purpose was to collect data and information concerning the prevalence of moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea  in highway and rail workers and it’s impact on […]

FMCSA Removal of NY chiropractors from National Registry.

The New York State Department of Motor Vehicles has been notified by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) that New York chiropractors are no longer certified to complete USDOT Medical Examiner’s Certificates for commercial drivers.  The FMCSA published a Bulletin stating that it received notification from the New York State Department of Education, State […]

New York chiropractors no longer allowed to give DOT physicals: Land Line Magazine

FMCSA issues notice of emergency removal, de-certifying New York chiropractors from performing DOT physicals.