Overdrive Magazine | Trucking Business News & Owner Operator Info
Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/580471
Voices 4 | Overdrive | October 2015 Last March, Lower Lake, Calif.-based driver and retired Santa Rosa police officer Greg Price was at his wits' end. He wrote to Overdrive with some details of his case that resembled the feel of writings by the early 20th century European novelist Franz Kafka. Indeed, Webster's definition of Kafkaesque – "having a nightmar- ishly complex, bizarre or illogical quality" – fits the bureaucratic nightmare that Price experienced. And not just him, but also many other drivers up against an official- dom that is "just running scared with sleep apnea," as Price says. Much of the legal problem that drivers have with sleep apnea has stemmed from regulatory confusion and a growing willingness of medical examiners to refer drivers for sleep studies as a condition of medical cer- tification. In many cases, the training for certified examiners in recent years has detailed a variety of strict screen- ing protocols for those referrals, for which the National Registry program has been roundly criticized. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration's ability to quickly remedy the situation once and for all has been limited, however, by congressional action requiring federal changes to proceed only via a formal notice-and-comment rulemaking, a process that takes years. In the mean- time, FMCSA communication with certified examiners regarding apnea has increased, though it still falls short on clarity and consistency. Price's problem wasn't with his examiner, however, but with his home state. The interstate privileges in his commercial driver's license were suspended by the California Depart- ment of Motor Vehicles for what he says was specified simply as "federal regulations." Having gotten his CDL about a year prior and driven for Schneider National, "in October 2013, I got a notice of re-examination from California DMV." A hearing on his medical history seemed innocent enough, but a few days later, Price says, "I got a notice of suspension and revocation, which completely revoked my driving privileges, not just my CDL." With no ability to work and an R.V. trip for a vacation planned mere weeks away, another hearing reinstated his Class C auto license, then his Class Sleep apnea's twilight zone While federal and state regulators fail to clarify sleep apnea's relationship to medical certification, drivers continue to be victims. Leadership needed on apnea issue " I also have sleep apnea. Each year as I prepare to take my annual physical, I have stress – not because of my condition, but because of the lack of knowledge and the sheer arrogance of medical professionals. And now we have to concern ourselves with the bureaucratic nightmares that are our state DMVs. The FMCSA has failed and failed miserably in the management of this issue. The fact that there are no federal regulations and that a federal law stipulated by Congress had to be introduced just to restrict the FMCSA from issuing [less-formal] guidance tells you everything you need to know about the lack of leadership on this issue. Until a formal regulation is established with clear guidelines and borders are created, we will continue to suffer with this. " — Eddie Crooks, Baltimore, via OverdriveOnline.com