Do you know any commercial drivers?

[Frostbit]

Better tell them to get in fit condition before attempting to get their CDL medical certificate after May 21, 2014. In the interest of "public safety" the Fed is hammering down on the medical qualifications and most of the generally obese, snoring, cigarette smoking, diabetic truck drivers I see are no longer going to qualify to drive.

[Lanie]

If they can keep from falling asleep on the road, I'd be a happy camper.

[Frostbit]

If they can keep from falling asleep on the road, I'd be a happy camper.

OK,

I'll be sure to let the next guy I refuse to give a medical card to because the "recommendation" is if he

1) admits to snoring
2) Has a neck greater than 17 inches
3) Has a BMI greater than 28 (practically every NFL football player BTW)

Any of those three and he MUST have a sleep study with complete eval and implementation of device (CPAP) for three months before he can drive again.

You aren't seeing the bigger picture. That guy will now end up on welfare. He will be fired. He is probabvly not educated to do anything else.

Now the next guy comes in. His weight is great, his exam is normal, he gets his card and then has an unexplained seizure behind the wheel.

My point!! You CAN NOT predict the future. This new movement towards "safety on the highways", again getting the Government in charge of desiding what is safe, will take many, many drivers off the road in 2014 & 2015 when they come in for their renewals.

Might be worth getting your CDL Lanie. By the time you are done there should be lots of openings happening.

Do you snore?

[scott]

OK,

I'll be sure to let the next guy I refuse to give a medical card to because the "recommendation" is if he

1) admits to snoring
2) Has a neck greater than 17 inches
3) Has a BMI greater than 28 (practically every NFL football player BTW)

Any of those three and he MUST have a sleep study with complete eval and implementation of device (CPAP) for three months before he can drive again.

You aren't seeing the bigger picture. That guy will now end up on welfare. He will be fired. He is probabvly not educated to do anything else.

Now the next guy comes in. His weight is great, his exam is normal, he gets his card and then has an unexplained seizure behind the wheel.

My point!! You CAN NOT predict the future. This new movement towards "safety on the highways", again getting the Government in charge of desiding what is safe, will take many, many drivers off the road in 2014 & 2015 when they come in for their renewals.

Might be worth getting your CDL Lanie. By the time you are done there should be lots of openings happening.

Do you snore?

So anyone that snores has to have this three month study?

That's complete bullshit. LOTS of people snore due to allergies.

[Frostbit]

So anyone that snores has to have this three month study?

That's complete bullshit. LOTS of people snore due to allergies.

There's many other regulation changes as well as recommendations. The recommendations were the result of 2-3 years of specialty committees made up of specialists. So basically you have a group of cardiologists saying we don't recommend this driver be given a card until he is evaluated by a Cardiologist. Snoring is one of the signs of obstructive sleep apnea so get a (very expensive) sleep study and if there are positive findings you must have documented proof of successful treatment.

Diabetes, for some reason, they way undergunned on. A guy can have a HGBA1C so high he is beyond out of control but that's OK as long as he is not on insulin. If he is on insulin he has to check his sugar one hour before starting the vehicle and then every 4 hours while driving and keep a log.

I could go on & on but I'll say this again like I said with the ACA. You don't EVER want to mix Government and Medicine.

[JB]

woo-hoo. Bust those Teamsters.

The trucking industry won't be in any trouble though. Didn't they let all them Mexicans drive further into the States than ever before a couple years ago. We're cool.

[Gingersnap]

We are a pretty health-conscious workplace. We will pay for most of your gym membership, we hire instructors to teach yoga and zumba on-site, we run a group deal with a couple of CSAs, we have real locker rooms for bike riders or runners, etc. We don't hire smokers (policy) or fat people (unwritten policy).

Sadly, people get sick anyway. Even if they aren't sick, they tragically do inane things like getting pregnant (fatness post-baby), going through menopause (looking fat even if weight is still the same), or getting old. This in addition to having heart attacks, getting cancer, needing hip or joint replacement, and so on.

Now, I think this is just life but when it happens to some people in our organization they have the added stress of being sick (fat, old) while doing everything "right". It screws them up mentally. I'm not kidding here. The pressure to present a health "ideal" makes them crazy. They can't turn back the clock but they can't meet the preconceived fitness levels (even with diet and exercise) so their minds kind of implode. It's sad and it's not productive.