I hear ya Don
I'm glad you found a competent and caring physician who is willing to take time to evaluate your case on an individual basis. There's not a lot of Marcus Welby MD left these days. Yeah! Agree! The first doc can kiss my grits too!
FAA to "check" overweight pilots for restful sleep..
- Thread starter asjssl
- Start date
I hear ya Don
I'm glad you found a competent and caring physician who is willing to take time to evaluate your case on an individual basis. There's not a lot of Marcus Welby MD left these days. Yeah! Agree! The first doc can kiss my grits too!
pearlpro
Expert Expediter
If a Doctor had a MD certificate, who is to tell him hes Incapable of giving a basic physical, Ive had many physicals over the last twenty years, some were 15 mins and Thanks for your $$$$ and some were tough, and thorough....Now if they want to give us a better Physical set to standards, DONT GOT TO A DOT CLINIC....those places fail and there just money mills, Id name one but Id get Sued, but this CLINIC if it can be called that , everytime Ive gone there its a joke....they pass as many through the doors as possible and CASH IN....
My Doctor, whose an Older Greek man, doesnt believe in an easy Physical, he really checks you out from the "GLOVE" To Running in place, and deep knee bends, Reaching, Grabbing, and Breathing tests....He tests so well after Im done, and I pass I have great confidence that I am healthy, and capable of this job, Unlike the money mills, whose Physical consists of Turn your head, cough, do you feel alright, do you have any Issues, Ok PASSED....leave your CASH at the door.....
My Doctor, whose an Older Greek man, doesnt believe in an easy Physical, he really checks you out from the "GLOVE" To Running in place, and deep knee bends, Reaching, Grabbing, and Breathing tests....He tests so well after Im done, and I pass I have great confidence that I am healthy, and capable of this job, Unlike the money mills, whose Physical consists of Turn your head, cough, do you feel alright, do you have any Issues, Ok PASSED....leave your CASH at the door.....
Yep. Starting, I think next May, we are REQUIRED to get our DOT physical at a doctor that is "approved" by the federal government. That SHOULD scare the socks off of anyone.
my doctor and even the physicians assistant/PA was approved recently...no problem.....appears it is just a formality....they apply (no charge). the feds just added more red tape....
would be nice if this sewing circle of old hags would know of what they speak...instead of making things up....they have no idea what is required of a dr application form....a standardized test would be nice, because apparently it isn;t that way...
Wrong. It is now very involved and expensive to become an "approved" doctor. It will drive up costs.
http://nrcme.fmcsa.dot.gov/about_faqs.aspx
My doctor said it was just an app form....he didn;t mention if money was involved....
from the site...I suppose my doctor took the test online
The testing organizations may administer the exam at a testing facility where candidates can take the examination using test booklets and test forms, or using computer terminals. Or, alternatively, the testing organization may provide an on-line testing option where the candidate may take the test from his or her office or other location provided the testing organization has a monitoring mechanism to detect cheating or other inappropriate activity during the on-line test.
The testing organizations may administer the exam at a testing facility where candidates can take the examination using test booklets and test forms, or using computer terminals. Or, alternatively, the testing organization may provide an on-line testing option where the candidate may take the test from his or her office or other location provided the testing organization has a monitoring mechanism to detect cheating or other inappropriate activity during the on-line test.
Your DR is wrong. Check the link. There is rather extensive training needed. It is NOT free. Those costs will be passed on. The fewer DR's that do it, the higher the cost to the driver.
DieselDriver
Seasoned Expediter
If professional drivers got paid what pro athletes get paid we would be in great shape, but, people in great shape have medical problems also while driving.
"Rather extensive training"? I guess that's relative: I found a dozen offers for online and/or video training of 8 hrs, for which the Doctor is credited with 8 hours of Continuing Medical Education.
It may be different now, but when I was nursing, nurses were required to obtain 24 hours of CME credits every 24 months [for licensure renewal], but doctors were required to obtain none - all were voluntary.
The cost [$395 at one site] is fully tax deductible, so there is no excuse for passing it on to patients/drivers, but it won't surprise me when the doctors hike their fees for it.
"Rather extensive training"? I guess that's relative: I found a dozen offers for online and/or video training of 8 hrs, for which the Doctor is credited with 8 hours of Continuing Medical Education.
It may be different now, but when I was nursing, nurses were required to obtain 24 hours of CME credits every 24 months [for licensure renewal], but doctors were required to obtain none - all were voluntary.
The cost [$395 at one site] is fully tax deductible, so there is no excuse for passing it on to patients/drivers, but it won't surprise me when the doctors hike their fees for it.
Just going by what a DR on the radio said. He claimed a 40 course, mandatory, US government course.
I too had to have CME when I was an EMT. Normally was a week long course, about 3-5 hours per day, per year. CME depended on the state.
Funny, we begrudge doctors, who have untold hours of training and responsibility, what they make be have little problem with those in baseball, football or movies, who have ZERO responsibility, what they make.
ALL nurses, DR's, Paramedics, EMT's have to deal with life and death, NONE are paid what they are worth. As with firefighters, most EMT's are not even paid, yet face the same legal problems as the paid people do.
Tax deductions are a joke, as everyone in business understands.
I would MUCH rather see a doctor, nurse, EMT/PARAMEDIC make more than they do than see a "Cano", who does NOTHING but play, and is making 200 MILLION over the next ten years. Our priorities as a Nation, and who we are willing to pay who, for what, SUCK!
The info (link) Layoutshooter provides about this ME program is interesting. It appears in this piece that the FMCSA is telling doctors that drivers "In team operation, drivers share the driving by alternating 5-hour driving periods with 5-hour rest periods."
That was true several years ago but a rules change rendered it untrue. But through its mandates, the FMCSA is teaching this to the medical examiners who, by enrolling in the program become an extension of the FMCSA bureaucracy.
This is a great program for the FMCSA bureaucrcy. They get an army of examiners medical information and putting it into a database like never before. How it will play out on the ground remains to be seen.
Requiring questionable, "money mill" medical examiners to complete a course to continue doing exams makes them no less questionable after the course is completed. It may even give the money mills an edge over the competition -- that is, the real doctors who would give a good physical but won't bother getting certified as a medical examiner because they don't do enough of them to make the certification and reporting worth the bother.
Instead of reducing the money mills, this new requirement may supercharge them.
That was true several years ago but a rules change rendered it untrue. But through its mandates, the FMCSA is teaching this to the medical examiners who, by enrolling in the program become an extension of the FMCSA bureaucracy.
This is a great program for the FMCSA bureaucrcy. They get an army of examiners medical information and putting it into a database like never before. How it will play out on the ground remains to be seen.
Requiring questionable, "money mill" medical examiners to complete a course to continue doing exams makes them no less questionable after the course is completed. It may even give the money mills an edge over the competition -- that is, the real doctors who would give a good physical but won't bother getting certified as a medical examiner because they don't do enough of them to make the certification and reporting worth the bother.
Instead of reducing the money mills, this new requirement may supercharge them.
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It's going to make money for some, and cost money for us. I understand the reason [drivers using forged certs], but think a better approach would be to beef up the penalties significantly for the cheating drivers.
" but think a better approach would be to beef up the penalties significantly for the cheating drivers."
It would be IF safety was the primary goal of the new regulations, which it is not.
It would be IF safety was the primary goal of the new regulations, which it is not.