New Federal Regulations for Medical Certifications Effective 4-20-2016
NEW FEDERAL REGULATIONS FOR MEDICAL CERTIFICATION OF COMMERCIAL DRIVERS EFFECTIVE APRIL 20, 2016
To avoid any unnecessary lapses in medical certification, U.S. HealthWorks is recommending that drivers start the commercial driver medical recertification process about two months prior to the expiration date on their current medical certificate. This will allow time to gather medical documentation/data before their current medical certification expires, should this be necessary.
Beginning April 20, 2016, no more temporary medical certificates will be issued. Rather, there will be up to a 45-day window for “medical holds.” These have been renamed “Pending Determination” in the federal verbiage. These may be used when a U.S. HealthWorks certified medical examiner (CME) requires additional information from a specialist or primary provider. No new medical certificate is given out at the initiation of this Pending Determination period during which the driver may continue to operate under his/her current medical certificate. When the CME receives the medical documentation/data and accepts it, a new medical certificate will be issued with the initiation date based on the date the documentation/data is accepted. There is no additional charge for reviewing and accepting documentation / data, or issuing a new certificate under the Pending Determination category. Please encourage your drivers to get into U.S. HealthWorks with adequate time remaining on their current DOT medical certificates!
The driver’s DOT medical certificate will no longer be valid after it expires, or after the 45-day Pending Determination window, whichever comes first. If the requested information is not uploaded into the national database the current certificate will be cancelled by the DOT. The driver will not be legal to drive under DOT regulations. A new complete medical evaluation will be required to renew their certificate. Any time a new complete medical evaluation is required there will be a charge for that visit.
Short-term certificates, three months duration or less, may still be issued if an operator is deemed safe to drive. This will allow a longer time period to obtain data. However, a new complete medical evaluation will be required near the end date of a short-term certificate. Back to back issuance of short-term certificates is not prohibited and may be utilized when necessary.