Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/65581
For the Record FMCSA finalizes National Registry rule T by TODD DILLS he Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration April 18 finalized a rule establishing a National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners. It requires health care profes- sionals who perform medical examinations for interstate truck and bus drivers to be trained, tested and certified on the specific physical qualifications that affect a driver's ability to safely operate the vehicle. The online registry will include only those health care providers who have completed the new FMCSA certification process. "Safety is our top priority, " Sec- retary Ray LaHood said. "This new rule will ensure that health-care professionals conducting Depart- ment of Transportation medical exams fully understand all of the demands required to operate large trucks and passenger buses safely. This rule addresses four " National Transportation Safety Board recommendations on com- prehensive training for medical examiners and tracking of driver medical certificates. FMCSA posted its uniform training and testing standards for medical ex- aminers at http://nrcme.fmcsa.dot.gov, where you can go for more informa- FYI | ROADCHECK SET FOR JUNE 5-7 | The Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance will hold Roadcheck, its annual vehicle inspection program, June 5-7. During a 72-hour period, an estimated 10,000 CVSA-certified federal, state and local enforcement inspectors conduct truck and bus inspections at 1,500 North America locations. | NAFTA CROSSINGS UP IN 2011 | The number of commercial truck crossings into the United States from Canada and Mexico was 10.4 million in 2011, 1.7 percent more 10 | TRUCKERS NEWS | JUNE 2012 tion about the rule. At that time, health care professionals, drivers, employers, law enforcement officers and the pub- lic can review the training standards and sign up to receive updates on the implementation of the rule. Compliance is required for health professionals by May 21, 2014, at which point drivers must obtain any medical examination from a certified examiner. Medical examiners who fail to maintain federal standards will be removed from the registry. To allow time for testing and than in 2010, according to the U.S. Depart- ment of Transportation. The 2011 increase follows a 9.4 percent rise in 2010 after two years of decline during the recession period of 2008 and 2009. | TRUCKING HERO CONTEST | Progressive Insurance is giving truckers across the country the opportunity to be recognized for their everyday courage with the Real Life Trucking Hero Contest. Through Oct. 31, Progressive will award six cash prizes of $1,000. One of those truckers will win $15,000 and the title of "Real Life Trucking Hero." To make a nomination, vote training centers to prepare their cur- ricula and receive FMCSA approval, health care professionals seeking to become certified examiners will begin registering on the National Registry website this summer. "Truck and bus drivers deserve highly-trained medical examiners that think safety first," said FMCSA Administrator Anne S. Ferro. "By holding medical examiners account- able to high standards of practice, we raise the bar for safety and save lives through increased commercial driver and vehicle safety. " for a Real Life Trucking Hero or learn more, go to http://www.progressivecommercial. com/truckinghero or http://www.facebook. com/progressivecommercial. | THREE TRUCKSTOPS ADD SHOREPOWER | Shorepower Technolo- gies has added its services, which lets drivers plug in to grid power instead of idling, to three truckstops: Sapp Bros Travel Center at Exit 440 on Interstate 80 in Omaha, Neb.; Broadway Flying J at Exit 144 on Interstate 35 in Williams, Iowa; and Shoemaker's Shell Travel Center at Exit 395 on I-80 in Lincoln, Neb.