Being a CME (Certified Medical Examiner) for truck drivers must have plenty of pitfalls. But certainly, drivers who are in necessity to take a medical certificate to support their families have no choice but to pass a DOT physical exam with the CME. As it turns out, there are some owner-operators who aren’t quite as sure of what they’re doing. And if that’s because of age, then it’s because of age. It’s because of the DOT physical exam that drivers are even able to know what they’re doing when behind a wheel.

As it turns out, the medical review process isn’t as clear as people would like it to be. Certain loopholes do exist, such as vision/hearing impairments, insulin usage and seizure responses. With Certified Medical Examiner has no leeway in qualifying drivers who cannot attain benchmarks. The DOT requires by law for the driver to achieve 20/40 vision per eyeball.

The condition as been left for the judgement of the examiner, of course, there is direction from approved guidelines. In the case of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, drivers with heart attacks could return to driving post-two month period in the duration of other medical criteria. I which case the FMCSA suggests that CMEs don’t deviate from board guidance..

What drivers should keep in mind if they fail a previous exam is that they can take it again and perhaps override the previous results. However, in too many attempts, in the scenario where the drivers “doctor-shop” until the certification is passed, the FMCSA will see all the past exams and decidedly interrogate the driver in question. Additionally, incomplete DOT physicals will be uploaded as incomplete exams. Multiple of these sends red flags to the FMCSA.

Lastly, you must beware of CMEs who cannot handle truck drivers taking these examinations. There needs to be wiser decision-making in such scenarios.