Does the new law on DOT physical sleep apnea for truck drivers have you confused? Join the club! Drivers don’t know if they have to get sleep apnea testing, and, if diagnosed, whether they can still drive. There’s a lot of maybes and what-ifs involved in answering these questions, but let’s try to get some facts clear.
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For starters, there is no new law on DOT physical sleep apnea for truck drivers. As it stands today, the U.S. Department of Transportation, or DOT, does not require sleep apnea testing for truck drivers. However, DOT does require that truck drivers get a medical examination in order to hold a CDL license. The medical examiner is the one who decides if the driver needs sleep apnea testing. DOT says that it’s up to your medical examiner whether or not your medical condition will interfere with your driving. If diagnosed with moderate to severe sleep apnea, you are considered unsafe to drive and will lose your CDL until you’re treated for sleep apnea and deemed safe to drive again by your medical examiner.
Essentially, whoever examines you during your CDL physical will determine your sleep apnea status, and therefore, your ability to safely drive. That seems pretty straightforward, right? So, why all of the confusion?
Lack of a New Law on DOT Physical Sleep Apnea Arouses Confusion
The confusion stems from the fact that government officials can’t make up their minds.
Last year DOT planned to pass a new law on DOT physical sleep apnea that would require sleep apnea testing for drivers. Medical examiners, carrier employers, and drivers hoped that a new law would give the industry more direction, as there’s confusion on exactly what is and isn’t allowed when it comes to drivers with sleep apnea. However, that law never passed. President Donald Trump reduced regulations across industries once he was elected. As a result, government officials scrapped the proposed law. This change of plans triggered a debate across the trucking industry on whether required testing truck drivers for sleep apnea is good or bad. Some feel that the government should regulate truck drivers with sleep apnea. Others feel it is unnecessary and invasive. No one knows what they’re actually supposed to do about sleep apnea.
Common Questions on the Non-Existent New Law on DOT Physical Sleep Apnea
What is sleep apnea?
Sleep apnea is a disorder where a person’s breathing stops and starts while they are sleeping. This affects the quality of sleep they get. Sleep apnea can affect all age groups, ethnicities, and sexes. There are several factors that place people at a higher risk of sleep apnea such as being overweight, smoking or alcohol use, and a family history of sleep apnea. The issue with driving and sleep apnea is that several studies suggest it is unsafe. People with untreated sleep apnea are at risk of falling asleep or being slow to respond. In recent years, many accidents have occurred in the transportation industry as a result of someone driving with untreated sleep apnea.
Do I need sleep apnea testing to drive truck?
If you meet a certain criterion you may need sleep apnea testing. For example, medical examiners typically test drivers for sleep apnea who have a higher Body Mass Index. The drivers will go through testing and, if diagnosed, must accept treatment, before they can receive their CDL.
If I have sleep apnea, can I still get my CDL?
Yes! You can still drive with sleep apnea as long as you are managing your condition. If your medical examiner confirms that you’re managing your sleep apnea and it won’t interfere with your ability to drive safely, you’re good to hit the road. If you do not manage your sleep apnea, then there’s a chance your CDL will be denied until your condition is under control. Keep in mind that state laws vary. Check out what your local Department of Motor Vehicles has to say about sleep apnea regulations in your state.
How does sleep apnea cause trucking accidents?
We’ve talked about what sleep apnea is, but really, how is it causing these accidents. Sleep apnea affects your ability to stay is restorative sleep. Basically, restorative sleep is why we don’t feel so groggy or lethargic after a good night’s sleep. Just because a trucker might be in bed with his or her eyes closed for a solid eight hours, does not mean that they’re actually getting a good night’s sleep. In fact, if you’re suffering from sleep apnea, your body and mind will feel like it only got two or three hours of sleep.
This leads to the obvious cause of accidents – sleep deprivation. Your body and mind just don’t function properly when you’re lacking sleep. Your reflexes will slow and your ability to keep your eyes open becomes harder and harder with each passing minute. Accidents usually happen after a drive nods off at the wheel or fails to maneuver their rig in time.
BMI and sleep apnea correlation
Another thing that we do know is that sleep apnea directly correlates with a person’s Body Mass Index (BMI). Statistics and studies show that the higher your BMI is, the more likely you are to have sleep apnea.
Will I lose my CDL if I test positive for sleep apnea?
If you have moderate to severe sleep apnea, your ability to maintain your CDL could change. The government puts temporary holds on CDLs when drivers are diagnosed with moderate to severe sleep apnea. Your CDL will be returned to you once a medical examiner says you are managing your condition. More frequent examinations may happen in order to keep your CDL active. This is to ensure that your health is monitored for safety.
Do I have to use my CPAP machine?
If you have a CPAP machine to treat your sleep apnea, you have to use it to keep your CDL. Medical examiners won’t sign off that you can drive a truck safely until they are sure that you are using your CPAP and treating your sleep apnea. Travel CPAP machines are available, and truckers can use this to ensure that they are able to treat themselves for sleep apnea while still out on the road.
Companies like Respironics and ResMed have worked aggressively to create what is considered among the most effective and technologically advanced travel CPAP machines currently available. These new travel-friendly CPAP machines are lightweight and portable, designed to save space while delivering the same powerful therapy as their home unit counterparts. When looking for a travel CPAP machine, these are just a few brands to consider.
September 26, 2017
I feel unless you have a accident history due to lack of sleep no one should determine your need for testing. I do however feel that driving schools should emphasize sleep management practices. As a driver of twenty four years I know when to rest and when I can drive. That of course comes with experience.
November 20, 2017
I agree. I been driving for 5yrs and if or when I get tired I park get rested and continue driving. Anyone can fall asleep driving even without sleep apnea
March 12, 2019
Dot physicals are a fraud. Regulations are a substitute. Laws are a statute. Substitutes can only apply when there is a statute to support it. There are no laws for a dot physical. Only a regulation. Regulations are not law
December 19, 2019
Actually there is no regulation just guidelines for the medical examiner to follow. These guidelines aren’t clear cut either.
September 14, 2020
BMI should not be used as a diagnostic tool says the CDC. It is flawed, gender and ethnically biased and not specific to the individuals health. I am okay with sleep apnea testing, but not in the basis of the BMI or neck measurement. There should be specific symptoms pertaining to the condition to require testing. If a patient demonstrates good bodily function be individually specific metrics they should not be required to test and the medical professionals should be counseled away from BMI on onto actual diagnostics. Also, a probationary period should be given to obtain testing. To be put out of service disqualifies many people from healthcare which makes this expensive testing and treatment a financial burden in addition to not having income to attend to regular their regular bills. there needs to be better criteria for determining need of testing.
December 29, 2020
And should you as a driver question a dot doctor, they can throw that sleep apnea at you regardless of whether you have it or not. Happened to me. I do not have sleep apnea but I’m stuck with the machine now. My quality of sleep has seriously been downgraded now.
March 26, 2019
I agree. getting tested for potential sleep apnea is unnecessarily costly on top of any examiner not knowing whether a person just had a bad night .
August 13, 2019
Sleep apnea is not just a bad night. Based on your results from a baseline study if you test moderate to severe you must be treated and controlled to have your CDL. This is determined by a physician example family doctor. If you walk in and say you snore, your tired , sleepy during the day, memory loss, family history, hbp, Diabetes guess what you are a candidate and will need a test. Wearing a CPAP mask for positive air pressure is life changing when you desperately need it. There is no pain involved. CPAP saves life’s, you wouldn’t want to be the one driving on the highway next to a semi driver with sleep apnea!
August 20, 2019
Then test everyone even people who dont have a CDL. If what you are saying is true I dont want to be driving next to a car driver that has this sleep apnea.
September 11, 2019
I agree it’s life changing, I haven’t slept comfortably since being forced to have a sleep study for being 3lbs over a Doctors weight chart, btw the Dr has a side deal to get paid for sending people for the study. The technology of forced air breathing units had come a long way, but as a CDL holder you can’t use the smaller hosless units because to pass DOT physical you are forced to provide a report, this is not right, no other job position is dependent on these reports to avoid losing your income. If diagnosed we should have the same rights as any other job position held. Do away with reports that cost you your income, if I’m using a smaller unit I should be able to let the physician know and show him the unit being used for treatment.
September 24, 2019
This is a joke, another way to charge people for someones else’s “OPINION” on what you “Might or May Not” have. They don’t know you, they are guessing and playing games with someones ability to make a living. Especially, in an economy that only benefits business and not the employee wage or to pay bills and stay above water!
October 7, 2019
Drs and the sleep apnea tests are a scam just to push up sales of the cpap machines. Any dr who says you need a test just because your overweight is a scam artist looking for cash from the cpap company
October 29, 2019
Has anyone ever taken into consideration the driver and the major impact to his family this B.S. doctor only regulation imposes on them.is it right for the driver not to share the same bed with his or her spouse because of the noise created by a seal constantly breaking…YES IT HAPPENS TO MOST WHO USE CPAP.how about all of the drivers regardless of how clean they keep their masks and machines are constsntly getting sick.most but not all drivers are VERY RESPONSIBLE when to know if they need to pull over or not and rest.it doesn’t matter who you are…if you drive long distances you will become fatigued…FACT…all of this came about because i think doctors are afraid of being sued…part of the job description dont you think…the last time i checked we all live in a free society and are able to make our own decisions that impact our lives.
November 8, 2019
When I first went in for my DOT medical card they measured my neck size and yes at the time I was 450lbs. I had to get tested and I had severe sleep apnea
I had to use my sleep machine everyday but you know what, I had the best sleep ever and I felt great. They need a 3 month progress report that your using the machine and its recorded using WiFi and or SR card.
I was granted 1 year DOT Medical card. Today I lost 150lbs and my machine broke a few months back. I just got tested to see if I still have it. It’s mild now and I hope I don’t need to show any reports and can get a 2 year DOT medical card.
If you feel like you may have sleep apnea. Please talk to your doctor. Sleep apnea can save your life.
November 8, 2019
That’s awesome!!! Good luck to you.
January 16, 2020
everything ive read on the subject basically states if you take the sleep study you will be buying a cpap. especially if your not built like a fitness trainer.ive also read between 70 and 80% of cpap users quit after a short time. because even with it they still get tired, many develope respiratory diseases as well. or at night turning they get knocked off or some people feel like they are being smothered by it. think about this for a moment.what if the medical industry regulated healthcare providers to you have to be within these guidelines to keep you certification? under a certain BMI, or high blood pressure, hypertension,etc yeah you can take meds to control it but say that any of those conditions you can only practice for 1 year before certification. my question to you is have you done a sleep study yourself? if so are you required to have one?there are alternatives on the market to a cpap but it seems dot examiners overlook them because they dont fit the plan
January 17, 2020
Bunk! I’ve been a driver for 17 years. I can tell you from my experience. I’ve never fallen asleep at the wheel of my rig, or personal vehicle. I’m outta work because of this stupid thing. I cannot wear it. I’ve lost more sleep wearing it. I wake up more tired with it. So, you tell me how safe that is.
March 28, 2020
You see that’s the problem. You assume that every CDL driver drives a Semi Truck Class A going down the road. Well. I ‘m a CDL driver and all I drive is Class B maybe a Class C and I’m still being scrutinized because of this Damn regulation. Do I use a Cpap ? Yes, Do I feel better using it after the the 8 years that I have been on It ? Yes. Still doesn’t mean that I’ll be falling a sleep behind the wheel. Another thing, Why am I being scrutinized for being a Class B driver when I don’t even put in 12 to 14 hour days of driving like a Class A driver does ? I’ll be lucky if I’ll put in 6 hours a day driving while being in and out of the truck all day and yet every damn year I need to take another DOT Physical, not every 2 years as a driver with out a CPAP. Sounds like discrimination to me. These Medical Examiners have no proof that I have been falling a sleep even with using a CPAP. But just ASSUME because I use one that I’M falling asleep driving. They ASSUME that I drive cross country in a Semi Truck. They ASSUME that I drive for 14 hour days. Just damn law is B.S. Pass the regulation for everyone to get tested every year or get rid of it completely and quit playing GOD with every one’s lives. Hell, Why not pas a regulation for all drivers, Cars, Trucks, Trains, Etc.. .I’m sure they might be falling asleep behind the wheel also.
May 21, 2020
I’v found billions in fraud connected to sleep studies. I sleep walked out of a semi 6/8/2012. My wife was driving and granddaughter was in passinger seat. Was put on cpap Feb 2012. When I called I told sleep folks I didn’t feel better. Was told I’d get used to it. 10/1/12 I had a seizure. Have had 6 known seizures sence then. Trying to get on disabilty. Have over 2 million safe driving miles with Prime Inc. Was not brought in for more sleep testing till after sleep walking with cpap. I know of other sleep walking cases. And have found you can become cpap dependent. 02 toxicity in lungs which can cause cysts that can go undetected. Pulse ox senser on finger doesn’t give good reading because hemoglobin in blood tries to protect body. It said researchers new that effect would be hard to prove. Can’t find Doc willing to go against sleep folks.
August 16, 2020
Yes, med. center’s are being successfully sued pushing these study’s for many millions of dollars, I have had to renew my card for over twenty years, the past few times doctors would start asking asking more and more questions on my sleeping sleeping habits, my reply was always, I like my sleep and I do it well, then I start seeing all the brochures on sleep sleep study’s appear on the coffee tables and walls, then the doctors seemed to focus more and more on it can if I was not being honest about being able to get good sleep. So, I have been to many med. Center’s through the years without any problems, just over two year’s ago I went to a Concentra got my two year card, I am six feet one half inch tall, my BMI came in at thirty six, overweight yes, but not terribly, so I go this year to another Concentra, now I’ve lost seven lbs and the physician walks into the room, doesn’t even ask me any questions, says I have some bad news because of my weight and age my BMI being now thirty seven point five, a sleep study, must be done. I told him that I take safety very seriously on the road, and I’m telling you because my wife is a nurse, I do not have a sleeping disorder. I was upset these test alone are thousands of dollars, I have no insurance of course, he did not seem to even be listening. I left upset with a temporary card, and ordered to have a sleeping study done, That’s not napping, we simply can not afford that, so I start looking into this apnia business, well it seems like if you have the test done you will likely fail, if you break between breathing for a couple of seconds you will fail, everyone does that, now comes the real bad news, these machines that many poeple don’t even need, costs up to twenty thousand dollars, “WoW” this is extortion in my brain, I am about to lose my livelihood because of a scam on CDL drivers who are apparently to old “40+” or overweight a little or a lot, doesn’t seem to matter, this feels like discrimination in a big irrefutable way, and I am currently seeking counsel, let me be clear, I am not against driving safety, accidents can be terrible I’ve seen more than I would want to on the road, however I think if there was a sincere concern then would be looking into companys that are pushing there drivers to hard, because I think blaming people because of their age or weight, neck size ! Please, you have an agenda,and are causing hard to many decent hard working people, please stop ! I hope to all drivers you do not have to go through this.
November 19, 2020
BULL SHIT. I’ll call you and argue.. 1 major carrier sends you to a Physical Therapist. Contrary to popular belief they are not PHYSICIANS. Worse i have still after numerous requesr for my “prescription” not received it. Being told “you don’t need it.” Or “we can give you a copy of the study results and you can take them to your Dr. They will write a prescription for “refills”.” Now I received an $850 machine and a bill for $1500. After paying $115 for a DOT physical 1 month prior and received a 2 year physical. Only to be forced to redo my physical and dropping to a 3 month with sleep study required. So 23 of 24 months gone… Its a SCAM.. 1) I get less sleep and am more fatigued using the machine than before.. I have 9 years of driving without problems no accidents and less than 3 citations. (Overall a pretty clean driving record) but idiots who DO NOT do my job, and HAVE NEVER done my job continue to believe they should be allowed to decide what I can or cannot do.. and you base this on??? Oh yeah OTHER people, “base line” you don’t have a base line for me or John or Mark unless you’ve studied US INDIVIDUALLY. So my advice to you is to return to your over paid unnecessary classes and find your way to do something you actually KNOW. Leave those of us that have been doing this alone until you’ve done my job don’t tell me how.
July 5, 2022
YES IT IS LIFE CHANGING AS IN IN TO THE ABSOLOUTE NEGATIVE CHANGE. I have not had a good night sleep since being diagnosed and forced to use the scam treatment of a CPAP and recently decided to leave my career that fed my family and where i was happy to sit behind a desk. Threw the piece of shit CPAP in the dumpster and now I feel rested again but unhappy in my professional life.
September 19, 2019
What can you do about this sleep resting I am sure I looked,exhausted and they referred mr. I was doing double shifts. Be I sleep like,a baby. This shit cost,me a job.
October 16, 2019
A PA doing the medical exam decided I must have sleep apnea, do to being male, over 50, overweight and a neck over 17″ Lets look at that, 6’4″ 66 yrs old 325, 18.5″neck. Oh I forgot, size 7.75 hat ,14 shoe,10″ wrist, size 15 ring. Look up big boned.
July 12, 2023
We have to fight back. Check out my info. We need to do what they say can’t be done. Maybe a class action.
October 6, 2020
So I’ve been driving 8 years around year five I noticed I couldn’t sleep on my side or back only my stomach, I would wake up choking, Then I started to get really sleepy while driving I started pulling over to take naps. O was 33 at the time. Then it got worst I couldn’t hold a phone call I would fall asleep, it got worse I started falling asleep while just sitting there like falling over. When I was at a family barbecue on the middle of a hot summer day I was sitting at the table and I fell over if it wasn’t for the chair I was in would have hit the ground. I dropped my beer on the ground embarrassed I had had enough. I sought help my test showed I stopped breathing 80 times per minute. I was deemed severe. I got my machine and after getting used to it, my life has never been the same. I FEEL GREAT. ITS REAL IT CAN KILL YOU IN MANY DIFFERENT WAYS BESIDES FALLING ASLEEP AT THE WHEEL. I YOU THINK YOU NEED IT GET ONE ON YOUR OWN BEFORE THEY TELL YOU YOU HAVE TO
April 30, 2022
I understand that these lying companies pay people to post. But please stop advertising falsehoods.
November 20, 2017
Question. Sleep anea testing is no longer required. Is there a new law that’s abandoning SA testing.
November 20, 2017
Hey Armetheus. Truck drivers can still get tested for sleep apnea, but there is no law requiring the screening. It will be up to your company and medical examiner how your sleep apnea situation is handled. Find more information here: https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/driver-safety/sleep-apnea/driving-when-you-have-sleep-apnea
February 5, 2018
It’s still a law cause I just failed a dot physical the doc said it’s still a dot lw and now I have to take another sleeptest
June 27, 2018
your doctor is a liar and you should report him for fraud. american quacks are notorious for being profiteering scumbags. DOT should be abolished and let the market decide. we’re not children, we’re americans, damn it and we should shut this country down until congress stops its crap! starve em out!
August 21, 2018
Hi Andre, did you get another sleep study done and if so did insurance cover it. I was just denied because I had checked that I did have it a couple yrs ago, but lost weight and didn’t need it anymore. The Dr. said DOT will need a printout of the last 30 days wth.
September 11, 2018
That should not have happened. It is absolutely not a law it is 100% up to your medical examiner. Some medical examiners are under the assumption that they are required to send somebody for a sleep test because of a high body mass index. This is false. The fact that they are sending people strictly because of a high body mass index is very discriminating. Anybody can have sleep apnea. They give you the questionnaire in order to determine if you’re more likely to have sleep apnea for every box you check off of course your more apt to having it. For them to automatically determine that there is a high chance you have sleep apnea because you check off no boxes but have a high body mass index is not right. If you truly don’t have any of the symptoms you should not be made to have the test.
March 12, 2019
What law? There are no laws for a dot physical. Regulations are not laws. Regulation is a substitute. Laws are statutes. A substatute can not be applied unless there is a statute to support it. Its government fraud. Besides, the federal government don’t have authority over the land or people. Their job is for war and immigration. Know ur rights. There be a lot of be flying around these days.
April 10, 2018
As dentist who makes oral appliances for people with sleep apnea, I respectfully disagree and think truck drivers should be tested. The test is very easy and is done at home in your own bed. I positive diagnosis should not mean a trucker can’t work. It just means treatment is needed.
May 4, 2018
Dr. Are the are the mouthguard molds that you make with the computer chip in them. Approved or do you need the full CPAP machine
May 27, 2020
I’ve been a CDL driver only a couple of years, but I had terrible snoring in 1993! I went to a breathing doctor and he gave me a sleep test in a SLEEP LAB only —- in a hospital environment, Nice TV,Meal and got into bed with a million of those electrodes all over my upper body and a few on my abdomen, one on each leg.You’d think you wouldn’t be able to sleep……. well I slept like a baby. Only weighed 140 lbs, just came in presenting with snoring I wanted to get rid of , my son complained when we went to Smithsonian and had to share a hotel room….lol ! Guess what? I had it so severe , doctor said he never saw a worse case. They gave me another sleep study at same sleep lab, tried about 4 machines and 2 facial things, I got asked which breathing thing I wanted, I c hose the nasal pillows…. Then they let me get a third night at the sleep lab about a week later. I used the nasal pillows and the air pressure, the humidity and the volume of air that felt comfortable to just ME. Nobody forced me to make a wrong opinion. That last night, as usual, all the electrodes were stuck all over me AGAIN. They said all my oxygen levels, brain waves and breathing easy was just perfect and they only let you sleep 6 hours. Then they wake you up, you go to the office down the hall to pick up your very own designed and planned out machine and facial breathing thing of your choice. They fit your head with the size nasal pillows and voila !! It’s very easy and no discomfort. When I read about people testing from HOME???? Heck no , you cannot do it by yourself. I had 2 ladies sticking the round things on me and asking me, “honey, does that feel comfortable?’ They were very nice and the results were on a printout every few seconds. They could see my breath I took, how many seconds, matched with my Oxygen content and brain wave activities of ALL sorts of things.. There are 4-5 stages of sleep and each one can be seen on the monitor , how long and how deep you’re doing. Trust me, there are no professional Sleep Studies done on you correctly without involving a Sleep Lab. You arrive at night about 7 pm and it takes them about 2 hours to get you comfy cozy, snacks and all , TV show of your choice!!Now I drive a truck and my SIM card is read when ever I have to get my Medical Card approved. I LOVE my machine, I take it everywhere I go and do NOT sleep very good if there is no electricity or something. So far , I am 97% compliant and they love to see a Driver who is WILLINGLY TAKING CARE OF THEMSELVES. I had medical insurance at the time so everything was paid for , virtually.. I can only imagine how much it would cost without Insurance coverage! All I know is Businesses have a medical book they give you at hiring time and MOST will state that if you have been diagnosed with Sleep Apnea, they do NOT have to pay for your hospital bills after you going to sleep and getting in an accident!!! It’s in Fine Print, read it carefully………. insurance coverage for a stubborn person who thinks it’s not sexy to sleep with it on, is making a wise decision not to cover your Hospital bills after you go off the road, nodding off… even though I had never done that , my SNORING was the presenting problem. No diabetes, no obesity, no HBPressure…. nothing else but noisy snoring. Be careful to adopt and pursue, embrace your Apnea . I further went on to lose more weight and have no more nightmares, which I had all of my life from childhood to adult….. Do a professional sleep study and get it into your life, you will never regret it.!!
June 25, 2018
What if you have a mild case
July 15, 2018
And plenty of people have “normal” lives while living with sleep apnea. So unless your proposing that everyone with a drivers license (reg. car license) should be tested, it’s another overbearing over watch of the government in the form of regulation. I’m all for physical medical screening, but let’s draw the line before we’re next compelled to submit to yearly HIV test, forced to have all Surgen General recommended immunizations, and DNA profile submission like the military. Keep in mind we are “Professional” drivers and majority of us know how to recognize, evaluate, and react to our fatigue.
March 31, 2019
Hey Doc. Newsflash for you. DOT does not, repeat, does not accept a mouthpiece for treatment. The Feds want that machine only in order to track compliance. You cannot be monitored for wearing an oral appliance. I was forced into a sleep study. Had an oral appliance made. Had to go on that uncomfortable sleep depriving machine. End up having surgery (deviated septum repair and had my uvula cut) and lost 70 pounds. Took another sleep study, and no longer have to use that horrible machine. Now sleeping great because I got off that insidious machine!
April 12, 2019
Thanks for your feedback, John!
June 28, 2019
What I dont get is if the machine causes the opposite effect, why do they insist on using it for treatment? I’m more tired on the machine than I ever was before. I’m more of a risk now. I never had a problem before, but now that I toss and turn for at the very least 4 hours trying to get comfortable or moving the hose out of my own way, pulling on the mask because it’s not sealed, adjusting the pressure because I’m getting too much air, feeling way more heart palpitations which I take medication for, and I’m near tears for exhaustion I have a problem! My father had open heart surgery. When the surgery was over they gave him heparin to reduce the chance of blood clots. The heparin had the opposite affect on him. Do you think his doctors ever gave him heparin again?
September 30, 2019
[email protected]
December 11, 2019
One simple answer money and a corrupt system
December 6, 2021
My Dr. suggested I take a home tests. Wish I’d never taken it. Naturaly I failed. Had no trouble sleeping before and never got sleepy until its bedtime. Started using machine and tossed and turned readjusting masks continually. After getting my 4 hours in, I would remove the mask and finally get some sleep, but now am always tired during the day. After losing weight, I stopped snoring so much and machine showed low “events per hour”. I asked for a new home study kit to try to get Dr. to clear me of cpap use. I received the tests, and to assure that I passed, I started at 6.00pm and sat with tests on watching TV until midnight staying awake getting in the required 6 hours. Went to the sleep Dr. to read my tests and he looked at it about 10 seconds and said
“yep, you still have sleep apnea” Remember, I took the test while awake watching TV?
November 20, 2019
My husband is a truck driver, and admittedly overweight. Two years a DOT doctor required that he participate in a sleep study. Since the study was expensive, my husband took a home sleep apnea test. Of course, he was diagnosed with sleep apnea. He did not sleep the entire night because the machine kept him awake! He was told that he stopped breathing several times during the study. I was next to him, and I never saw that he stopped breathing. Last year, no sleep study was ordered by the DOT doctor. Now this year, DOT doctor chosen by his company said that my husband needs to wear CPAP or oral appliance. My husband is wearing a very expensive oral appliance with a chip. He is feeling horrible….poor man. I am researching all of the trucker’s, and I hope to support you! I want to gather facts/evidence first. Hang in there.
September 14, 2021
been driving a trk for 40 yrs three tickets no dui two speeding no acidents and know they want me to take sleep apnea test sorry will not do when every one has to and the sucker making use do this has to i will i am 58 and have seen no physical on driving ido beleave ever couple yrs they keep making you do something else because accidents happen so i beleive everyone who drives for a living should get another jobits only getting worse for drivers not saying pay has not went up let everyone pick up their on shit
June 19, 2019
Why shouldn’t ALL drivers be tested?
September 14, 2021
ive been driving class a for 40 yrs no accidents if it comes down to every body being tested ok but thats my right tonot have someone else to tell me i have to to keep my job at this time and age you never need to get into my personal medical unless you are paying for it ive seen trk driving with no physicaland know you are going to tell mei need to do c pap lets see if the presadent of this country will be told he has to do ityes that was smart
September 8, 2019
Of course you disagree, you make a shit ton of money from this snake oil. My cpap destroys my sleep. I realize your device isn’t a cpap but I’m sure the regulation pads your pockets by creating a need for something people probably wouldn’t have sought out before.
October 3, 2019
What about every driver on the road. Why not make it a requirement for anyone who drives for more than 2 hours one way a day.
November 19, 2020
No its all or nothing.. I dont care if its 5 min a day.. FACT most accidents occur CLOSER to home. FACT any CMV involved in an accident is listed and guess what it goes on the record of that driver. FACT Commercial Driving is the ONLY field in which you are deemed a PROFESSIONAL after only 1 month. Also after becoming a PROFESSIONAL you are no longer eligible to take those safety classes to reduce points from citations INCLUDING if the citation was issued while operating a vehicle OTHER than CMV. FACT SOME people do feel better after being treated with a cpap or bi pap. While others have issues adjusting or feel worse due to the lack of restful sleep while fighting the machine. FACT these machines like other medications can cause adverse reactions.
October 11, 2019
David M. Kaffey DDS, like someone already stated, truckers are not the only drivers on the highway who can possibly pose a danger to themselves or others by having untreated sleep apnea. To take away our ability to earn a living and allow others to pose the same danger is not fair. I have complied with everything they’ve asked me to do on my own dime) immediately after purchasing a home amongst all the other financial responsibilities I have. I was in the process of switching companies when asked to do the study only to find out I wouldn’t be able to return to work until three months later. If there isn’t a law a persons livelihood shouldn’t be jeapordized. I’ve been driving over 20 years without incident.immacculent driving record. And never had a situation where I even almost fell asleep. I agree to treatment if diagnosed, but to interfere with financial obligations is ridiculous if you are complying.
October 18, 2019
No, it’s not for Truck drivers
January 25, 2021
Well doctor I respectfully disagree with you. Until everyone with a license for any type of vehicle is required to be tested why should truck drivers be singled out?
May 12, 2018
Has anyone ever found that they DON’T need a C-pap after testing?
March 4, 2019
Yes I’m a driver an had a sleep apnea test because I was overweight. No treatment was necessary.
June 6, 2018
I agree with you because they measure your neck if it’s more than 18 inches, they say you definitely have sleep apnea. I completely disagree with that because you may have a bigger neck.
June 25, 2018
I disagree also because they also say the when you have a couple 17 inch neck.
June 28, 2018
I know someone who said they did that to him and the S-A Dr added an inch to his neck and never measured it
July 22, 2019
I think it’s discrimination and they’re stereotyping people with big necks and high body mass. They’re smaller people who has it but never get checked cause of the medical examiner. It’s all about money to me. They know truckers make decent money so that’s why they’re doing it.
June 20, 2018
I have a question the doctor my job sent me to for a physical asked me to sleep on my machine for 45 day and I so and got a reading of the machine and will not pass me because my machine does not give a reading to say it works and asked me to buy one that does or he want release me . and my machine is only two years old and the insurance will not replace it .and I can’t work on job . and my blood pressure is good and I fill good . what are my rights if I can’t work till he release me . I have left job now because I can work because of doctor
June 22, 2018
Your machine should have a slot for an sd card that it yiu will need to take it to the place you got it and they can read it for you
April 12, 2019
It is improper to make assumptions that affect a persons profession or livelihood. DOT examinations are not measurable in many aspects. If an examiner whispers behind one of my drivers to check his hearing, it is a subjective observation. If an examiner visibly looks at one of my drivers and decides they want a sleep study, that also is subjective especially in the brief time it takes for a DOT exam. DOT does not have a rule for SA. It is up to the DOT examiner(?). I don’t care if you are a doctor, nurse practitioner, or rocket scientist – opinions are like assholes, everyone has one. Don’t make assumptions that effect livelihood during a DOT physical without a known diagnosed condition. Medical personel often say how easy things are to take care of “its just a simple sleep study”. There is nothing simple, inexpensive, non-invasive, non-stressful, or non frustrating for just about everything medical. Use the proper criteria for the purpose at hand, being DOT recertification
April 21, 2019
I think it causes anxiety and puts more stress on truck drivers. Besides the physical s you go through the random drug tests plus having to show proof that you use .plus supplies for these machines are not cheap a mask for a Cpap machine plus a hose a close to 200.00. A lot of stress just to maintain a license. I honestly think it is just a way for people to make. A lotts money and control a driving industry.
April 27, 2019
I have sleep apnea and just got denined a CDL license because I wasn’t using my machine. My complaint is that I’ve had sleep apnea for years and the stupid (expensive) machine doesn’t make any difference in how I sleep. I feel absolutely no difference like some people say I felt a difference the first time I used it. Not me ……..
June 18, 2019
Curt- I am a CME and try to help my drivers any way I can. Unfortunately I would have to agree with your examiner. You have to remember our license are also on the line when we examine drivers. I would not want to be in court trying to explain why I gave you a card when your were not being compliant. I know it is frustrating
June 4, 2019
Whatever happened to HIPPA regulations . If your personal doctor is working with you ,I dont believe someone who gives you a physical once should have such authority . They have no relationship with you . Let’s be honest alot of the physical examiners are on an ego trip
October 14, 2019
Boom. This nails it perfectly
June 7, 2019
I am a CDL driver holder and I was diagnosed with Mild osa I am being refused a DOT card from a medical examiner for one year she is treating it as if it was moderate or severe and I’m just lost and I don’t know what to doand I’m reading all of this federal transportation department rules and regulations and it’s just so confusing and they’re so confused
June 18, 2019
Get a letter from the clinic that diagnosed you with mild sleep apnea stating it was mild and take it to her (if you already haven noy). If she still won’t pass you get a amachine asap. AFter 30 days of compliance she should not be able to refuse you the card.
June 15, 2019
Hi Paul. I know it has been over 18 mo since you posted this response, but, re-read what you wrote! Basically you said that, until a driver has a series of accidents deemed caused by sleep apnea, they shouldn’t be tested??? WOW! How many people have to be injured or die first? One is too many. Sleep apnea is COMPLETELY controllable…and, not a healthy issue to live with. Ideally, you’d hope that people who feel tired and are suffering the symptoms would check themselves into a Dr on their own, but, not everyone is this wise or diligent regarding their own health, all you have to do to verify this is walk through a truck stop and see how many excessively overweight drivers there are! I am NOT a proponent for govt over-reach, BUT, if it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck, damn it, it’s probably a DUCK! And, if the driver won’t take a sleep study test on their own, then I guess they need a kick in the rear by the DOT to get them there. I get to say all this because I am a professional driver who was diagnosed with sleep apnea 7 years ago…I took steps to “cure” it , a little at a time, and now sleep on average almost 8 hours a night with a CPAP machine and no more sleep apnea events! I feel MUCH better, can drive alert for my entire shift and no longer need to stop during the day for a “nap” like I used to..
July 7, 2019
if it is required that i need the cpap machine i think the dot should shoulder the expence. not the driver . what is unfair is that i must pay thousands of dollars for equipment,exams and loss of revenue because a me follows protocall while not all drivers must endure this.
February 6, 2020
And tell me something, whats wrong with having to stop for a nap every once and a while????its all a scam to rip us drivers off of our hard earned money…All so DR. Blow me can drive that nice new mercedes or porsche, and live luxurously on the honest american drivers dime
February 16, 2020
I just went and got a DOT physical before I plopped down big bucks for truck driving school to make sure I could pass one first. I passed all parts of exam then I’m told by doc he will give me a 1 yr physical card instead of 2 yr card because he says I have OSA and have to do a sleep study before renewal. I wasn’t even asked if I had any of the symptoms of OSA!! Just because I met standard criteria is bullsh*t! I googled symptoms of it and I dont have any of them. I dont even snore!! If CDL drivers are being targeted, everyone having a drivers license should be required to do sleep studies regular as well every 2 yrs. Any one driving can get tired, you dont have to be a truck driver to be special about it
September 28, 2019
My problem with singling out BMI by testing facilities is discrimination on their part. How do we know we don’t all suffer from sleep apnea, if everyone applying isn’t tested. It’s a great con, a way to make more money for both the examining centers as well as sleep study centers , and CPAP manufacturers.
December 10, 2019
It just another way for the government to tell you what to do, I have never had a problem sleeping until I started wearing the CPap to sleep
February 8, 2020
I hear you, Paul. However, it only takes one accident to kill or injury you or someone else if the driver is sleep impaired. I lost a friend who had 35 years of safe driving, to a 27 y/o cdl driver who hit him head on because the younger driver fell asleep. No idea if the younger driver had sleep apnea, but one accident killed two drivers. I have to drive over that accident site twice a day for the remainder of my career.
May 29, 2020
I have been at UPS driver for 30 years I’ve never had any trouble sleeping I don’t snore however I am chunky now I am required to do the sleep test which I failed with a mild-to-moderate case now $10,000 has been spent by insurance companies in me just so I could keep my job and I don’t have a CDL I have a class C non CDL pissed off
May 21, 2021
Fuck no your government already has their noses to far up are asses already just leave us alone and quit trying to fix shit that’s not broken try educating dumb ass 4 wheelers
September 21, 2022
I’ve been on the CPAP treatment for years, forced by the company I work for and of course DOT. I hate it, I sleep so much better the days I don’t use it. I think it should be illegal to force this medical treatment on anyone, it’s against our rights, then anyone who drives any vehicle should have to do it, including the lawmakers, because cars cause accidents !!!!!!! It’s BS
October 16, 2023
I agree. Are doctors required to be tested for sleep apnea? If they are not getting enough sleep, how can we trust their judgment or skill to do surgery on us?? I’ve driven truck for 31 years without an accident. And now a DOT physician is requiring me to get tested. I think if they should apply the same rules to the doctors. If they have sleep apnea, they should put their license to practice on hold until it’s treated.
October 24, 2017
If I was tested and was told I had sleep apnea and now with the new law do I still have to be compliant with my CPAP machine. I feel that I sleep worse with my CPAP machine then I did without it. It wakes me up constantly every night
November 20, 2017
Great question. My question is. Is it a new law that drive drivers no longer have to worry about sleep apnea
February 5, 2018
This is still a law
April 18, 2018
I think it’s a bunch of bull I’ve been driving truck for 25 years have not had an accident ticket in over 18 years they don’t take that into consideration they don’t take anything else into consideration I sleep fine now in fact I get less sleep cuz I can’t stand to wear them machine so now instead of getting 8 hours I probably get five and a half you have to get four hours on the machine 70% of the time 10 years to retirement and when I do I’m going to burn that piece of s***
May 12, 2018
21 years with CPAP Machine and loving it! the first 2 year was hell using it , now can’t go to sleep without it .6.5 to 9 hours of sleep every night .
April 3, 2022
It is not a law, look it up.
November 20, 2017
If you are already diagnosed with sleep apnea, your condition must be managed in order to pass the medical exam to be a truck driver. That most likely means you have to continue using your CPAP machine. Read more information here: https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/driver-safety/sleep-apnea/driving-when-you-have-sleep-apnea
April 10, 2018
Oral appliances are an alternative to a CPAP for some people
June 25, 2018
Can they monitor it
March 26, 2019
Oral appliances can help with sleep apnea. The problem is simply that the medical examiner has no way to verify compliance. When we do the annual exam on someone diagnosed with OSA, we need to assure the driver is compliant.
March 31, 2019
I guess we are all liars, we have to prove we don’t have sleeping problems. what a bunch of crap
March 31, 2019
Is that a requirement for a mild sleep apnea or just moderate-to-severe
January 6, 2018
If you do not sleep better with your CPAP, then the CPAP is misadjusted or broke and should be worked on until perfect
February 3, 2018
I have the exact same problem and would like to be retested for sleep apnea. I don’t have any symptoms of sleep apnea
March 25, 2018
If you would like to be retested you have options there as well. If we can be of assistance feel free to contact me. http://www.somnosvc.com
March 25, 2018
Yes, you have to be compliant with some form of treatment. If you are having trouble with your CPAP machine see your physician that ordered the CPAP for you. Also, if your apnea is mild to moderate you can potentially wear an oral devices that would be made by a dental professional. You do have options!
April 1, 2018
There are other treatments for apnea besides the machine. Look into Inspire Sleep, it is a new surgery for moderate to severe apnea. Or, mouth guards for mild to moderate apnea.
April 10, 2018
Inspire has potential but is much too costly and not covered by many medical insurance. This surgery is in the neighborhood of $30,000. Oral appliances are effective for many people and cost in the $3000-$5000 range.
November 22, 2019
A dental appliance won’t work because the ME requires proof that the treatment is being done. I got my DOT physical yesterday and have had sleep apnea for over 10 years. I had to have one years worth of CPAP results sent to them. It isn’t a big deal, it’s just wirelessly downloaded. A dental appliance may work, but until it can record whether it’s being used it won’t be accepted.
November 25, 2019
Good point! Thanks for mentioning this!
April 8, 2018
I agree, since getting diagnosed and forced to use the machine, I never get a “good nights sleep” anymore
May 12, 2018
I agree… these contraptions are supposed to be there to help us and improve sleep and reduce stress, I have 5X more stress worrying about getting the minimum time on it!!!
May 21, 2018
Lol no lie there your constantly having to make sure your getting your 4 min. In ,,so then your worried about all the time ,so you actually, get no quality rest ,it seems to me
May 21, 2020
I’v found billions in fraud connected to sleep studies. I sleep walked out of a semi 6/8/2012. My wife was driving and granddaughter was in passinger seat. Was put on cpap Feb 2012. When I called I told sleep folks I didn’t feel better. Was told I’d get used to it. 10/1/12 I had a seizure. Have had 6 known seizures sence then. Trying to get on disabilty. Have over 2 million safe driving miles with Prime Inc. Was not brought in for more sleep testing till after sleep walking with cpap. I know of other sleep walking cases. And have found you can become cpap dependent. 02 toxicity in lungs which can cause cysts that can go undetected. Pulse ox senser on finger doesn’t give good reading because hemoglobin in blood tries to protect body. It said researchers new that effect would be hard to prove. Can’t find Doc willing to go against sleep folks.
May 29, 2018
I hear you. Mine wakes me up all night long.
July 18, 2018
I have the same experience. I try to sleep a couple of hours then put mask on at midnight and keep it on 4 hours. During that time ,I just cat nap, waking up frequently. Then I take it off and try to get some more good sleep. I’m more drowsy during the day now than before the cpap. After I lost a lot of weight, I asked for another home sleep tests in order to reverse my diagnosis. I even cheated by sitting up and watching TV 6 hours while wearing the test device. The DR. still said I had Sleep apnea even though my results showed different.?? Could this be a loss of income for him. I told this to my primary care provider and he told me no one passes the test. I sometimes lay in bed awake all 4 hours with the mask on in order to get my dot physical requirements. There has to be a better way to separate people who actually need a cpap. My son-in-law can fall asleep at a stop light if he doesn’t use his and he is not overweight. For me, I just want to remove the requirement to pass my physical. I would still try to use the cpap some because I found that it helps my sinus drain and I haven’t had a sinus infection since I started the cpap. I use to take anti biotics regularly.
January 13, 2019
Yes Travis I agree I do not rest at all with the machine after 4 hours I take it off and go to sleep
August 5, 2019
Travis it’s been 2years since you wrote this but, I understand what you’re saying because I was diagnosed with osa in 2013. I felt wonderful after I began using my machine but then began to feel awful so I became less compliant. Much less compliant. But somehow with a kick in the pants I went back to my sleep doc and we made some adjustments. First he dialed back on the pressure quite a bit because I lost weight. I no longer felt like a balloon each morning. Don’t assume you won’t need adjustments in your machine pressure set up. Tha was a mistake I made and wish I had complained about much earlier. We then tried a different type of appliance instead of an appliance that fits over just my nose or my nose and mouth I have a nose pillow that fits into my nostrils and requires less gear on my head. I’ve also found that I can order supplies from amazon and get a much better price on these items than thru Apria with much less hassle. I also keep spares so I can rotate without having to keep things cleaned up after each use.
August 30, 2019
I went to work for someone else and got my. And it was good for 2 years I have sleep apnea but I didn’t have to show that but now I change companies and they are saying I have sleep apnea so I have to show 30 days of logs showing how my condition is can I go to work somewhere else and see a different position or go somewhere else and use my existing medical card or is it all going to be in the computer and am I stuck having to wait 30 days with a sleep apnea machine before I can go drive
October 29, 2017
Gentlemen. Please look into sleep apnea. I have a good friend who has sleep apnea. He is a truck driver. He left the road, due to falling asleep at the wheel. Then he was diagnosed with SA. His memory is returning, he wakes up refreshed, he is not so grouchy….he is, a different man. His informed me that the windows do not shake at night anymore when he is home. This is a serious matter and when you are running down the road and see a catastrophic collision, ask yourself “Did that driver have Sleep Apnea”:?
November 7, 2017
I have sleep apnea and my machine makes my life worse. I get less sleep due to that machine than I do without it. And yes I have a CDL!
November 20, 2017
Amen this whole thing is a money grab. That damn machine looses more sleep for me than it ever gained.
March 1, 2018
yes it is a money grab for the states.and its bias if you a big berson naturally you deemed to have sleep disorder.thats BS but it puts your livelihood at risk,to were you cant take care of your family.and who to say these medical examiners are on the up and up. ive been driving for 7years never a accident but weigh 300lbs all my life but now all the sudden you say I have sleep apena,because my BMI exceeded the limit
September 17, 2019
The only time I had an issue was from smoking how many laws must we pass they should tell everyone no smoker can be a trucker due to the fact that if he smokes a lot and coughing alot you can blackout from loss of oxygen to your brain
April 10, 2018
John, you should be evaluated for an oral appliance.
August 24, 2018
I was diagnosed from a sleep study as having mild sleep apnea. Was prescribed an oral appliance. It worked great. Obozo and his bureaucratic communist regulators changed using an oral appliance. Obozo dictated the use of a CCRAP machine. I don’t sleep now because I don’t need the machine but am forced to wear it.
December 5, 2017
I have sleep apnea. Diagnosed. Got a cpap. Cannot sleep with it. I spend $4,000 on testing, machine ,and another $3200 hoing to specialist to tune my machine. That is 15% of my pay. I cannot sleep with machine on as 6 ot of 10 drivers have told me they also cannot. Now i do what they do. Watch tv with it on to hit my minimum then go to bed without it. I am in incredible cardiovascular shape. I do kickboxinf and jujitsu 4 nights a week and run marathons on weekend. After 20 years driving without cpap i never once felt i was going to fall asleep. After 4 months with machine waking me every 15 min i almost feel asleep a hand ful of time. It does not work for all. Spcialist now wants me to try a $2200 bypap.. not sure who this law helps
April 8, 2018
Like all “medical conditions” there are treatments that work for some people and treatments that don’t. However a sleep machine is the ONLY accepted treatment for people with sleep apnea? Lose my job because of a study that I wasnt part of? Sickens me to the core
July 7, 2019
are you going to pay us for it?
November 11, 2017
So, exactly what are the regulations? I did not renew my medical card in Aug. due to the sleep apnea rules, but my new employer wants me to get medical card back so I can drive locally for them. Can the ME make me get tested or not?
November 20, 2017
It will be up to your company and the medical examiner to decide whether or not to test you for sleep apnea. If you have sleep apnea, you will most likely be required to treat the condition in order to pass the exam and drive truck. The law change basically says that the federal government isn’t going to regulate sleep apnea testing, not that the testing itself would go away. Hope that answer helps!
November 14, 2017
Although I tested positive for SA, I feel that the way the test was administered, gave a false positive. It took 8 MONTHS for me to get used to the mask and achieve compliance. Only 5 times in the last year have I woken up after 8 hours still wearing the mask. Most nights I only manage to keep the mask on for 3 hours. Using the machine has ruined my sleep and now I’m more irritable than ever before. I can’t be the only driver to contemplate saying “screw it” and leaving the industry that I’ve spent more than 18 years in.
December 20, 2017
Went in for certification,was told to get sleep study,so damn silly,at 62,come on,41 years driving,wanted to slap the MRO,who the heck,,refuse to do it…
December 28, 2017
I have my next Physical due in a month, I have sleep apnea and use my machine. Can I now not declare this ? Still use my machine though but keepnitnpravate shall we say.
January 19, 2018
As long as you are monitoring your sleep apnea, you SHOULD be ok. I would double check your company policy on this. Let us know how it turns out!
January 1, 2018
The dot knows i have SA. My question is..if I do not disclose it on the long form on my next physical will DOT pick up on it or will they issue my new 2 year card?
January 19, 2018
Basically, DOT is leaving it up to the doctors and the trucking companies to decide how to handle sleep apnea. As long as you are treating it and the doctor says it’s managed, you should be ok.
January 7, 2018
How does this work if you’re a owner-op driver that doesn’t answer to a company? Once you find out you have SA do you have to report it?
January 8, 2018
so its up to the companies?
September 17, 2019
I have drove truck for nine years I have sleep apnea I do feel like it helps but I don’t feel good. You should make you or make a law that you have to wear it you should make that up in your own mind if you want to be safe and don’t want to kill nobody.
January 8, 2018
I think. This is. A. Crock of. Crap… At this point now. The “nurse practitioner” that administered my test said. Since. My 3 co-mirbidity of. Having a 17″ neck makes me. Have sleep apnea… I call Bs!…. It’s about generation of $ for more testing.. Which us as patients can’t. Normally afford!!!
August 5, 2019
That seems like a CYA move and a somewhat mid-informed one. Some folks are just bigger and not necessarily fat. Unfortunately checking boxes off on a form doesn’t allow for interpretation. Nor does anyone who does this testing want to be the one associated with a driver that may have a sleep related accident. So drivers seem to be getting screwed in the process.
But if your machine is keeping you up the. Something just ain’t right. Get it fine tuned. I’m terrified that once my insurance goes away I won’t be able to afford fine tuning as I continue to lose weight.
August 22, 2019
So my husband wasn’t asked ANY questions about his sleep, if he snores or anything. He sleeps well, does not snore. The ME said oh you’re over 40 and overweight, you have to have a sleep study. Bunch of crap. 3 month card and has to pay for this. My question is can he go to another ME even if we have to pay out of pocket for an examination?
October 14, 2019
Great question
January 17, 2018
I’m confused. I have an upcoming DOT physical. I do not have any symptoms of sleep apnea, but I am overweight and have a large neck. Will I be required to do a sleep study?
January 29, 2018
According to what they are saying in the article, its not DOT required. BUUUUUTTTTTT, it could still be required by your company.
August 27, 2018
When I went to take my DOT the Dr ordered a sleep study and issued a 3 month medical card. My insurance would not cover cost reported it as not medical related. After reviews I made of pros cons and laws I confronted Dr. With results where DOT doesn’t require and Dr’s response was at they do it to cover their ass from getting sued
January 26, 2018
It’s all about money period, doctor’s will send anyone and everyone to take the test to avoid a law suit.
February 2, 2018
I just got my recert today. My last one was for 2 years now today the Doc says that due to my using a cpap my exam is only good for 1 year. What the heck? Is this correct? If the FMSCA is no longer requiring testing and they can no longer force me to test why is this an issue? i can understand an employer requiring you to provide proof that you are properly treating it, but not denying me my 2 year card.
May 15, 2019
[email protected]
May 15, 2019
I know this is old post but I just had this same thing happen today. Ben fine for 6 yrs I’m 100% compliant with my cpap. My test reviews even show 100% compliant for the last 8 month. I have been compliant for the last 12 yrs and Today doc says all looks good except your cpap you will be restricted to 1 yr…. what the hell??? I would have the same question. If it’s not “required” can they deny me my 2 yrs? If someone know the answer or can point me to a link or law or anything that would be great. Thanks and best of luck to everyone
February 10, 2018
Why do companies insist on scheduling and paying for employees DOT physical exams at their health care provider? Does the company gain more legal rights to employees health information or to speak with the examination physician about a diagnosis by scheduling and paying the health care provider directly for the DOT exam?
February 12, 2018
I was asked to take SA test due to my body massage index being over there so called limits. Anyway, I was advised at testing if we noticed some episodes you will be woken to put CPAP mask on, to show before and after the difference. I was waken to put mask, so why was I prescribed the CPAP machine. Insurance doesn’t pay for it. Secondly, during time I used CPAP mask, I changed and found out, I’m allergic to the silicone, I knew I was allergy to latex and rubber. Now what Third if it’s so damn important to my health, why when I worn mask for naps of four hours and four hours at night, I was told my report was all red because I used it twice a day four hours each, that’s too much. DOT reg, is four hours in a 24 hour period. Needless to say I was home without pay. To try again. Now remember, SA, is whenever you sleep, so why was I wrong. My conclusion is a business, a income NOT A HEALTH ISSUE. And my beliefs anyone can get sleepy behind the wheel, fat, skinny, medium. So TEST ALL. because you’re missing the ones involved in those accident, and trapping the drivers with no problems to wear this piece of crap. I CAN NOT STAND THE CPAP MACHINE, I WANNA MEET THE A.. HOLE THAT INVENTED THIS. FOUND ANOTHER SOLUTION, I NEED MY DAMN REST
April 20, 2018
Orale device now has a chip implant to show results no more cpap machines!
February 19, 2018
The sleep apnea exam is a scam, the exam “requires” you to sleep on your back throughout the testing process, but what if you are a stomach sleeper? My husband was tested and diagnosed with sleep apnea but he doesn’t ever sleep on his back, he still has to use the cpap machine to keep his license. Have any of you ever heard of anyone taking this sleep test and Not being diagnosed with sleep apnea? I have not.
March 27, 2018
No I have never heard of anyone not being diagnosed with it! And when they do the testing they try to make the room as uncomfortable as possible so they can’t sleep good a big scam
August 5, 2019
Wow, when I was tested the room was like a normal bedroom with a tv and adjacent bath. The bed was comfortable and temp was to my liking. It was odd that I knew someone was monitoring me but I could not see them but I could hear them when a mike was opened. I was allowed to sleep anyway I wanted and allowed to choose the mask I wanted for this process. I think I was lucky/blessed as my sister died during her sleep study.
Also I have a family history with the condition. My dad had it. I am not from a “small” stature family. Granddad was 6’7” & dad 6’3”. I’m not overly tall at 5’8” but I am overweight. However, I doubt that weight loss will change my status I’ve been like this my entire life and as a kid my parents were told it was “adenoids.” I don’t mind the hell of missing the weight but my point is not everyone who is overweight has SA and not everyone who is thin doesn’t have it. It’s not that simple. There are also different types of SA with some harder to treat than others I think.
May 21, 2020
I have read of another person that died on sleep study. Sorry for your loss. I’v found billions in fraud connected to sleep studies. I sleep walked out of a semi 6/8/2012. My wife was driving and granddaughter was in passinger seat. Was put on cpap Feb 2012. When I called I told sleep folks I didn’t feel better. Was told I’d get used to it. 10/1/12 I had a seizure. Have had 6 known seizures sence then. Trying to get on disabilty. Have over 2 million safe driving miles with Prime Inc. Was not brought in for more sleep testing till after sleep walking with cpap. I know of other sleep walking cases. And have found you can become cpap dependent. 02 toxicity in lungs which can cause cysts that can go undetected. Pulse ox senser on finger doesn’t give good reading because hemoglobin in blood tries to protect body. It said researchers new that effect would be hard to prove. Can’t find Doc willing to go against sleep folks. After a seizure. You have to be seizure free and med. free for ten years. After cpap I’m now on total disability.
March 7, 2018
SA test is a money making scam.Everyone that’s tested is diagnosed,somebody’s making some money pushing these SA tests.I do not drive on weekends,so I take a bresk from the machine on Friday and Saturday nights,i have a constant neck pain from using the machine.The doctor failed me saying that I do not have enough percentage in my usage on my compliance report.It has cost me $224 so far for renewing my card,i make $10.50 hr ,she has given me a temporary card to get my percentage up and to keep my job after which I will pay another $112 then she will give me 3months,pay another $112, then 6months,pay another $112 to get a card for a year,when you add it all up I will be paying $560 to get my medical card,and I am in good health.This is making me very mad,i am 64 ,got a mortgage to pay along with other bills,i got to keep my job,my driving record is very good,i am very PISSED !!!
March 7, 2018
I was told last August that since I started blood pressure pills and I was at a 37 bmi and my neck was a 19 inch I had to test for sleep apnea. Of course I was mad. I went down to have the test. Got hooked up and fitted. Slept for a bit. The guy came in and said u don’t have it and I left. 2 days later they called my employer and said they needed to retest cuz I didn’t get enough sleep to satisfy the d.o.t. so I had to go in again, madder than he’ll. This time I slept for the same amount of time and this time they woke me up after 2 hours and said oh yea u have it and fitted me then and expected me to go back to sleep. Of course u couldn’t. So to me they called me back to make sure u would have to buy the machine. I paid 750 for the test and 850 for the machine. It’s a scam. I can’t sleep with it in the truck more than 2 to 3 hours. But it’s not good enough for them cuz now they put me on a leave until I can get 4 hours minimum of sleep. So no med card, no job, until than.
March 7, 2018
All this is a way for doctors to make more money .I’ve driven over 925000 miles and never before had problems now a dam doctor has the say so to make you take a test but the government don’t require it this is a bunch of bull
March 13, 2018
i agree this is an Obama generated scam i was referred for a sleep test and the examiner didnt tell me ,and 6 months later the sleep center called and said my CDL was going to be suspended if i didn’t come in and get tested . i’ve driven 44 years and 7 million miles and never fallen asleep or had a chargabl accident . and that over 40 rule is blatant age discrimination
April 1, 2018
I commented above about other sleep apnea reatments. I was just diagnosed with mild sleep apnea. But I am wondering why are the companies so worried about apnea and not Narcolepsy? With that sleep disorder, a person can randomly fall asleep at any time-no matter how well rested. Money would be well spent getting drivers tested for Narcolepsy and not apnea, necessarily.
April 10, 2018
The reason is that Sleep Apnea is much more common and we do have successful treatments. If someone can’t wear a CPAP, oral appliances may be a good treatment choice.
April 10, 2018
If the doctor says you need to be tested do they give you a temporary card for you to go get this done
May 8, 2018
MY MOM WEIGHED 85 LBS WAS 4’8” AND SNORED LIKE A FREIGHT TRAIN. THIS IS JUST LIKE HIGH CHOLESTEROL, EVERYONE HAS IT. WHAT BETTER WAY TO GET MONEY OUT OF THE MASSES AND THE INSURANCE COMPANIES. I WONDER WHY HEALTH INSURANCE IS SO HIGH AND UNAFFORDABLE? I WONDER IF RAILROAD ENGINEERS HAVE TO SUBMIT TO THIS BULL SHIT?
May 15, 2018
I have been driving trucks sence 1984 i think that over 30 years and my driving record spesk for it self just let me say this the trucking industry has changed some for better and some for worse but to look at me and say i need to take a sleep appean is discrimination and i think its wrong because your size dont mean you have sleep apnea because they are smaller men with it and i know your chances are greater if you are over weight i think company need to test al there drive and not just someone who they think is over weight
May 29, 2018
I agree that sleep apnea is a problem for some however I don’t think it should be forced upon a driver or make him or her go out and buy a mechine I’m an owner op and had to buy a mechine out of pocket while same time holding my medical card hostage until I give the data they want to me this all a money scheme never asked to be on it and don’t like that medical examiners profile you to determine this
May 29, 2018
I have been driving for 19 years no accidents.Then my doctor ask me to find a easier job so i go for a easier job thus companies. Medical examiner sends me for a sleep test so i take it at home now my doctor says i have moderate skero apena which i know hes lieing 1st they said i slept to long they said i was only to slerp six hours thats niot what DOT requires. Its 10 hours in the sleeper on top of this i don’t have a sleeper i drive local and i have adhd and I’m prescribed adderal 30 mg. I couldn’t sleep if i wanted to. So i retake test at home under the watchful eye if my wife who is a nursing assistant i did not stop breathing. I have a irregular heart beat so this could be what they picked up. But their is no way to prove a medical examiner wrong on this so it seems to me its just a money racket. Now my lively hood is being threatened bye this and a whisper test another test that majes no sense who can hear a whisper in a truck these rules are not fair to drivers like myself who has never had a incident in 19 years its simple your tired you pull over you take a nap or you sleep your 10 hour break yes these rules are not fair and should not exist why don’t they worry about the drivers with cell phones theirs the biggest problem again i drive local no incidents. so iscthe govt going to grant drivers like myself disability I’m 51
August 9, 2018
My friend has an old cpap machine that doesn’t have a chip to get printout. He uses it but because he doesn’t have proof they won’t sign off and he can’t afford new machine.
September 4, 2018
I’ve been driving for 30 years have always gotten a two-year medical card for the first time in my career 3,000,000 miles accident free mind you I’ve been disqualified because some medical examiner at Concentra says that I need to have a sleep apnea test done and guess where at Concentra so in the meantime I have no job and no way to support my family After 30 years and 3,000,000 miles accident free they want to take me off the highway this sleep apnea stuff is total bullshit. First off the nurses assistant who started the physical exam marks my height to inches shorter than I actually a.m. marks my way 23 pounds heavier than I am and measures my neck one and a half inches rounder than it actually is mind you I went to my own physician two hours earlier to get a DOT physical but because they are not only FM CSA list I use that as my back up to prove when I go to Concentra Medical Center that they are doing this Just as a money racket and taking perfectly fine drivers who are safe off of the highway
November 13, 2020
http://mobile.the-scientist.com/article/27316/harvard-prof-falsified-sleep-data / A link to known fraud in how one man was able to change data to set up billions to be made to sleep industry. It makes me sick to use cpap. I’ve lost my job using cpap. I sleepwalked out of a semi while my wife was driving and I had my cpap device on. I’m the acceptable risk to your supposed life saving device. Making people dependent on cpap devices and making sleep industry billions world wide. Health effects sleep centers deny. I’m 52 never sleep walked before using cpap. Do you think any sleep Doctor will admit cpap can cause sleepwalking. Enjoy your millions. The only enjoyment I’ll have is to Know you can’t take it with you. I don’t have ins now, will probably lose are car because I can’t drive. I had 2 million safe driving miles before cpap. Cpap effects normal respiratory drive. Years from now people will have lung problems. Which I suppose you folks are already planning to cash in on. By: Martha Garcia | Published: April 15th, 2013
Nearly two dozen universities failed to properly warn parents that a national oxygen study may put their premature infants at risk, federal officials say.
According to a letter (PDF) issued by the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) to the University of Alabama at Birmingham, the lead institution in the study, research institutions involved in the study did not offer informed consent to the parents of the premature infants.
The study involved 1,300 premature infants between 24 to 27 weeks of gestation. Researchers evaluated the results of increased or decreased oxygen through a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) treatment to determine the levels of oxygen saturation and neurological effects on premature infants.
According to the letter, the institutions involved were aware of the potential adverse affects the treatment may have on the infants, including blindness and even death. The DHHS Office of Human Research Protection says the institutions had sufficient evidence to know such treatment may cause serious consequences, but never properly informed parents participating in the study about the potential risks. The office considers the failing a violation of regulatory requirements for informed consent. The study took place between 2004 and 2009 and 130 infants of 654 in the low oxygen level group died, while 91 of 509 infants in the high oxygen group developed a serious eye problem, which can result in blindness. The study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2010, was financed by the National Institutes of Health and involved 23 high profile Universities, such as Stanford, Duke and Yale./I’m on total disability do to effects of CPAP. I don’t use CPAP. I have tried a few times and had seizures.
September 28, 2018
This is just another way for our government to take control of hard working Americans! We don’t need our government telling us what to do. My husband had been a truck driver for 30 years and he gained 15 pounds and the examiner told him he had to get tested for sleep apnea. He has never had a problem sleeping and he does not stop breathing during sleep. He was told he had to get this machine and he has to pay for it…over a thousand dollars because he has an insurance deductible of 1100.00. He hates the machine and it actually keeps him from getting good sleep. His primary physician even said his case is so mild he does not even need the machine. This is all so unfair…..he pays 100.00 a month now for a machine that he hates and does him no good!
October 8, 2018
This whole thing is ridiculous! My husband needed the test bcuz his neck circumstance is 181/4. Diagnosed with SA. With insurance $400 to walk out the door with the machine an $80 a month! We can’t afford it.. Now what!
November 1, 2018
Was just given a recertification exam was told my neck is 1” to big for my body was given a 3mos med card was told to have a SA TEST done before experation date or I’ll lose my cdl. I don’t have any sleep issues what so ever what happens to me during and after this rediclious test am I screwed? And how is this test even given administered. I show no signs of lack of sleep by any means I answered all their questions with a no and yet they’re still forcing me to take this am I able to get a different Dr at the same office or am I just flat screwed
December 6, 2018
I got a question. I been a CDL holder going on 7 yrs now. About a year ago I got referred to a Sleep Center from my family doctor. The doctor at that office was nice and they asked me some questions about sleeping and staying asleep. After we spoke about all this he says i would recommend you do a sleep test. I asked him in front of my girlfriend, if i do this test and it comes back that i have sleep apnea will this affect my CDL he says NO. So I agreed to take the test and test showed that i have Moderate Sleep Apnea. Then i went to his office by myself and he told me that results and says i have to use CPAP machine in order to keep my CDL. I been using it for almost a year now I don’t feel any difference at ALL, its not helping me. I went in today for appointment with him and am telling him this that I don’t like the machine because it’s not helping me. He says well you got a CDL so you’re screwed if you don’t use it. I don’t know what to do. I feel like I been lied to and taken advantage of. This is truly messed up. Hopefully it won’t happen to anyone. If anyone has any info or same situations please let me know. Thanks in advance.
November 13, 2020
Roy Ijams NOVEMBER 13, 2020 To Tony DECEMBER 6, 2018 If still on here Check out my post. /Having a normal level of CO2 in the lungs and arterial blood (40 mm Hg or about 5.3% at sea level) is imperative for normal health. Do modern people have normal CO2 levels? ? When reading the table below note that levels of CO2 in the lungs are inversely proportional to minute ventilation rates, in other words, the more air one breaths the lower the level of alveolar CO2. Breathing rates in healthy, normal people vs diseases CO2 molecule picturePin it!Share on Facebook Hypocapnia (CO2 deficiency) in the lungs and, in most cases, arterial blood is a normal finding for chronic diseases due to prevalence of chronic hyperventilation among the sick. Furthermore, as we discovered before, over 90% of modern people (so called “normal subjects”) are also hyperventilators (see the link below to the Hyperventilation Table with over 20 medical research studies related to normal subjects). Hence, chronic hypocapnia is very common for modern man.
Main CO2 health effects and uses in the human body/Follow the links for dozens of research referencesCO2 vasodilation health benefitsPin it!Share on Facebook – Vasodilation (expansion of arteries and arterioles). As physiological studies found, hypocapnia (low CO2 concentration in the arterial blood) constricts blood vessels and leads to decreased perfusion of all vital organs- The Bohr effect was first described in 1904 by the Danish physiologist Christian Bohr (father of physicist Niels Bohr). This law can be found in modern medical textbooks on physiology. The Bohr effect states that arterial hypocapnia will cause reduced oxygen release in tissue capillaries.- Cell Oxygen Levels are controlled by alveolar CO2 and breathing. Hyperventilation, regardless of the arterial CO2 changes, causes alveolar hypocapnia (CO2 deficiency), which leads to cell hypoxia (low cell-oxygen concentrations).- Oxygen Transport, therefore, depends on breathing and these 2 effects (Vasoconstriction-Vasodilation and the Bohr effect) explain the influence of hypocapnia (low CO2 content in the blood and cells) on circulation and reduced O2 delivery.- Free Radicals Generation takes place due to anaerobic cell respiration caused by cell hypoxia. Hence, antioxidant defenses of the human body are also regulated by CO2 and breathing, as these medical studies have found. https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.normalbreathing.com%2FCO2.php&h=KAQH97tTu
December 15, 2018
i think they are confusing narcolepsy with sleep apnea
January 4, 2019
I drive a school bus, twice a day for 1.5 hours and go home for 5 hours and can nap. Then return to drive 1.5 hours again. To tell me I must wear c pap is wrong. Wearing it does no prove you slept while you were it. My fitbit shows my sleep better than a c pap.
January 6, 2019
I think it’s a joke! Why just truckers? Why not everyone driving on the road ways? Does it matter if it’s a semi or car on the interstate falling asleep? Uh No! This is a way for our government to squeeze more money out of the working men and women in the trucking industry. They are great at this. Their going to keep on til there is nobody left to drive the semi and then they will change the laws back because they have destroyed commerce in our country. Our country’s are not our enemies, we are there best allies for doing it for them! Everyone wants thing in this country right dam now!!!! But when nobody left to do these job because of stupid law like this one. We can all go back to snail mail and wait 6 to 10 days like it used to be. Anytime government gets in volved in trucking it’s a cluster! Case and point ( USPS ) …. can’t manage money… take from taxpayers to keep giving raises to employees that don’t operate efficiently because they don’t have to because of tax payers are paying for poor performance. I would love to own a company that didn’t matter how tight a ship I ran if I lose money I’ll just snatch some for who ever and keep on roll. Hell of a setup! Yeah your dam right there something way the hell wrong with our law makers in this country!
January 8, 2019
If it’s so important why are they not testing every driver on the road ways tested , car, pickup drivers etc. a semi is not the only vehicle on the road that causes dead due to poor or sleepy driving. Is a joke! The doctor that sent me said well I think you need to go for a sleep study. I asked based on what? He replied you have a large neck. He never took a measurement asked me any questions related to my sleep patterns or anything. I’m seeing guys walk away for truck altogether because life is tuff enough as it is as a child driver balancing family life if you manage to keep one. The last thing people want is some asshole at a quick stop Med a check center screwing their lives up by dealing with this B.S. I guess when the general public can’t get their pretty’s delivered next day from bing box chains anymore and it take a week to get little Timmy’s Xbox game for Christmas they will raise enough hell it will cripple commerce in our country the law makers will go oh, we have to change this. Don’t think it’s true ask any carrier on the planet, they can’t find drivers fast enough and if they do they have to give big sign on bonuses. Be in this line of work for 30 years I have seen a lot in my time and I have come to the conclusion that we don’t have to worry about China or Russia our law makers are going to run this country into the ground as fast as their egos will let them.
January 31, 2019
I have been taking DOT physicals for 50 years and 4 million miles now they tell me I am t0 old that’s the excuse I got from the company dr plus my body mass index was .7 to high which I am told I need to lose 7 pounds and I will and after two years they can take this dot card and stick it where the sun doesn’t shine ! I would like to know if the body mass index is a true requirement for the physical ?
February 6, 2019
This is just more crap to punish working drivers… It’s easier to get illegals right and free crap than those of us that work for a living..The medical industry is all about anything that make hard working people too spend money
February 15, 2019
No because you’re singling out certain people and that’s just just not right so there should not be no law and sleep apnea
February 27, 2019
2014 I had a sleep study showing I had mild sleep apnea AHI 8. I have a CDL do I have to use the CPAP? It states on results things to consider a CPAP, ENT & Weight management. I dont snore or have sleeping issues.
March 31, 2019
Me to. WTF. They are all acting like lawyers. No one wants to okay anything with out a CPAP or a letter that releases them off all responsibility from a sleep study doctor.
March 12, 2019
Regulations are not laws. A law is a statute, regulation is a substitute. Substitutes can only apply when there is a statute to support it. There are no laws stating that a driver has to get a dot physical or a dot physical card. It is only a regulation. This is fraud. Besides. The CFR 49 regulations are a fraud against the civil rights movement act. “The rights to the people too travel upon public highways freely without hindrance. N the CFR it states drivers are travelling. Also, federal government has no authority over the land or population. Their job is for was and immigration. That’s it. This is why we have state laws.
March 18, 2019
On Sat March 9th 2019 I had my cpap machine on for seven hoursWhen I went to bed ay midnigjt I could noy fall asleeI was awake at 5:00 am..I have mow way pf knowing exactlu wjen I fell aslee after 5:00am. but I woke up ay 7::00 am.On my visit at cpap physicians theyre report showed I was asleep for 7 hours.Sleep apnea is a scam.As long as you wear it thats all that matters.Its not about the drivers well being or anybody else on our high ways.Its all about the money.Insurance compamys and doctors greed are putting theyre own familys aht risk as well as everyome else.They need to stop pjtting drivers in legal jeopardy instead of of themselfs.They are frauds
March 21, 2019
I had a re-certification DOT physical September 2018. Passed with no problem and issued another 2 yr card. In January I had a hysterectomy and went in this week to get a release to work exam. I lost 23 lbs since September even with being sedentary for 8 weeks and now was given a 6 month card and told I need to do a sleep study. My neck measures 14.75 inches, BMI is higher than it should be, but not terrible, I have no history of snoring – even sleep with my mouth closed (as per my husband who has never known anyone who doesn’t sleep with their mouth open). The position I fall asleep in is the exact same position I wake up in. Covers are never a mess. I am so frustrated. I’ve already told my employer that I will not spend the money on a study or machine. I have no risk factors at all. So, he better be ready to find another driver in 6 months. I’m five years from retirement and dispatch in the office more than I drive now that our company has grown. It’s not worth the hassle and stress to me. I’d never pass the sleep test anyway as I would go ape shit with stuff stuck all over my head and face. Allergies to adhesive would be an issue too. Can’t do any tape, bandages, stickers,etc. Surgery was a real challenge, but I had an amazing anesthesiologist that was very creative and kept adhesives off of me.
April 16, 2019
This is a money making scam. I went for my DOT physical and was told I am in perfect condition then the doctor said I have a 17 inch neck and I’m over 42 so I need to get a sleep apnea study before she could sign off on a full 2 year DOT medical certificate. If I am in perfect medical condition I shouldn’t have to get a sleep study. She gave me only a 3 month DOT certificate until I could get a sleep study done. I asker her if I will automatically get a full 2 year certificate after the study, she said I would have to get another physical after and pay another fee for a physical. This is when it became obvious why the sleep study was prescribed. This is nothing more than a money making scam. If doctors prescribe a sleep study they get paid for more services. Also, accidents don’t happen because people have sleep apnea, they happen because they don’t get enough sleep. If I have to go to work at 3 am and I don’t go to bed until midnight, it doesn’t matter whether I have sleep apnea or not.
June 4, 2019
Hippa regulations , out the window . You no longer can count on your Prime Care Provider to work with you on solutions to diagnosed medical issues . You have to involve everybody at the CDL exam clinic as well . I think it is funny that DOT has no regulations ,but the examiner does . What about driving record ,. That seems to make no difference. You can be 23 from a foreign country and that’s not a problem . Not until you burn your breaks up going over the mountains and slam into innocent people
June 5, 2019
I am in fact thankful to the holder of this site who has shared this enormous
piece of writing at at this time.
June 6, 2019
I have heard many people say this is a scam
June 30, 2019
I own a small excavation business I’ve been driving tractor-trailer basically since I was 20 years old moving heavy equipment I started my own business 25 years ago doing excavation work which is my livelihood and them having to move the equipment maybe one or two times a week and needing a CDL requirement to do it not going more than 50 miles from my place of business had no idea anything about this sleep test past two years I’ve gained some weight due to all the rain Last month I went for my physical for my CDL it was turned down due to sleep at Mia Cassidy I have maybe four more days until my CDL runs out due to my medical card obviously my business is in jeopardy since I am the only one that works for my company and not being able to move my own equipment basically almost put me out of business I am not a long haul truck driver and I explained this to the examiner that I only go within a 50 mile radius from my place of business and a truck usually sits 2 to 3 days or more a week my business is not truck driving it is heavy equipment operating and digging new homes and I’m trying to get the testing done. I have a wonderful driving record and I have never been issued a speeding traffic ticket ever I do not drink alcohol on her side and I go for my physical and all these years I’m getting shut down because of sleep and possibly losing my business that I’ve put together my lifetime
November 13, 2020
normalbreathing.com/co2/ Just info. I had seizures using CPAP. Hope you found help to keep your business going. I ran farm equipment. And started driving otr 1990. 2012 I was put on CPAP. Now I’m on seizure meds and total disability. I have tried cpap and have a seizure later. So, my old primary care Doctor told me not to use CPAP. After a seizure you can’t have a CDL till you are seizure free and off medicine.. Seizures is one of the risks noted in cpap study.
July 11, 2019
I work part time driving for a trailer manufacturing co. So far the eld and regulations are costing me more than what I am earning. I feel since the implement of new laws and regulations,trucking has become a dangerous occupation. I was a career firefighter before driving full time. I now feel it was safer running into danger than driving a truck. Recently was sent for sleep apnea test for revert based on age and neck size. I have been told I don’t snore or exhibit symptoms other than size. I took the test,couldn’t sleep and was told I have SA. Being large is not an excuse to sucker money out of someone. My previous Doctor( no retired ) always told me I am in good shape, never sent me for Sa test He stated there are way to many unsubstantiated test done in the name of money not health and safety!Sound familiar( dot, fmcsa,big business) I feel extorted,discriminated,and violated. Thinking of seriously hanging it up and letting some of the same afore mentioned people taking care of me!( welfare )
August 20, 2019
fantastic put up, very informative. I ponder why the other specialists
of this sector don’t realize this. You must proceed your writing.
I am confident, you have a great readers’ base already!
August 23, 2019
Thank you for your kind words, Judi!
August 25, 2019
i had a 2 year card and i applied for a job but i was told that it had to be less than 90 days old. went for the physical and was told i had to take a sleep apnea test can i get a second opinon
September 18, 2019
This article will help the internet people for creating new website
or even a blog from start to end.
September 22, 2019
i think dot does not know what they doing . im a local driver working four days a week took the test and they said i have sleep apnea my test said 5.7 accurance while sleeping and im sopose to trust the schmuck who read my test what does 5.7 mean how much sleep do loose because of the result is better than not being able to sleep for four hours when using cpap machice its stupid rule .
October 3, 2019
I am a driver for FedEx Freight. From Dec of 2016 to April of 2017 I was involved in 4 incidents which my safety mgr deemed as preventable. We are permitted to have 5 in a 3 yr period. In May of 2018 I was diagnosed with Severe Obstructive Sleep Apena. I got my Bi-Pap and have used it ever since. Unfortunately recently I was involved in another incident which was deemed preventable and safety disqualified me from driving due to the 5 in 3 yr rule. I appealed stating that I had unkonown case of Sleep Apena during the first 4 incidents. They denied my appeal. I live in Ohio and was wondering if anyone knew if I have any recourse against the company for this. Other drivers have had major accidents which were forgiven because of medical issues but I feel that I got screwed. There is NO other reason for my disqualification as I have never been late or call off prone and am one of the better drivers we have
January 2, 2022
WOWWW, JOHN!! 5 ACCIDENTS IN 3 YRS!! TRUCK DRIVING ISN’T FOR EVERYONE, AN YOU ARE ONE OF THEM!! I HAVE DRIVEN FOR 3 MAJORS AN 2 SMALLER COMPANIES FOR THE PAST 10 YRS, AN I HAVE NOT HAD 1 TRAFFIC ACCIDENT OR EVEN 1 TICKET FROM EITHER COMPANY, SO I DONT GET HOW YOU FEEL YOU GOT SCREWED? YOU ARE NOT A GOOD DRIVER IF YOU HAVE HAD 4 ACCIDENTS IN A 4 MONTH PERIOD! OF COURSE THEY ARE GONNA LET YOU GO, YOU ARE A HIGH RISK DRIVER, AN YOU ARE CAUSING THEIR INSURANCE RATES TO SKYROCKET!! PUT DOWN THE PHONE, AN PAY ATTENTION TO THE ROAD, BECAUSE YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO BE A PROFESSIONAL DRIVER, AN YOU HAD 4 PREVENTABLE ACCIDENTS IN 4 MONTHS!! IT’S RIDICULOUS THAT YOU DON’T SEE THAT YOU ARE THE PROBLEM! NO ACCOUNTABILITY AT ALL!!
October 11, 2019
They talk about sleep apnea causing alot of problems and drivers falling asleep at the wheel, but if some of you remember that several years ago before the ELD took effect. Truck drivers feel asleep at the wheel, because they were over worked. Companies are always trying to find a way to make more money and so they have drivers lie on log books in order to get more time on the road. Now that the ELD’s are active DOT is claiming that the past issues with drivers falling asleep at the wheel from being over worked as a Sleep disorder problem.
November 18, 2019
This is a matter that ought to be under investigation for what may be a gross exaggeration of details concerning CDL holders. I went in for a DOT Physical and was found to be 142 LBS. This was taken fully dressed (belt/knife/wallet/work boots). In addition, 15 minutes prior, to the physical, I drank four glasses of cold water – which all total was 13 pounds. My normal body weight is 225, and I am 6’3″ tall. Note: I am of solid build, little fat, and wear slim fit Wrangler Jeans. After this, my blood pressure was taken, and found to be 146 over 98. Interestingly enough, this was the second reading, which registered 168 over 100…this was found to be due to the fact they said it was a ‘faulty’ monitor…what??? Yes, then why was it in use I asked… Long and short, I received a three month cert, and they wanted me to get a sleep test done. Interesting if you begin to consider just how often this is occurring across the US, and the revenue it is generating. Maybe this is high time for a class action lawsuit. Just want you all to know. You may find it beneficial to weigh yourself ahead of your next physical, and also purchase a blood pressure monitor, a good one runs $50 and up. Stand up for yourselves!
November 22, 2019
First of all I would like to say superb blog! I had a quick question which I’d like to ask if you don’t mind.
I was curious to know how you center yourself
and clear your thoughts before writing. I’ve had a difficult time
clearing my thoughts in getting my thoughts out.
I truly do enjoy writing however it just seems like the first
10 to 15 minutes are lost just trying to figure out how to begin.
Any suggestions or hints? Cheers!
November 25, 2019
The best advice I can give you, just start writing! The longer you stare at a blank page, the longer it will stay blank 🙂 I usually start with the meat and then do the intro last. I hope that helps!
November 29, 2019
Your a brain dead idiot if you think this is a good idea ,this is government control healthcare in full display compliments of Barack Obama and the democrat party wanting control over your healthcare starting with the truck drivers they want full control over you
December 28, 2019
I was told you only need 4 hours a day too be complient with the dot. My ex dispatcher is still friends with me he is only 110lbs soaking wet but same height 5 ft 8in he has sleep apnea as well. So it doesn’t matter the size of person anymore. Your better off too do the test at the hospital instead of the home test.
January 2, 2022
YOU SOUND LIKE ONE OF THE PROUD BOYS DAVID!! WHAT IN THE HELL DOES BARACK OBAMA HAVE TO DO WITH YOU PERSONALLY AS A TRK DRIVER ON A CPAP MACHINE?!! REGARDLESS OF WHAT FOX NEWS, OR RUSH LIMBAUGH, OR DUMB DONALD OR ANY OF THE OTHER REPUGNANTS SAY, OBAMACARE PROVIDED FOR ALOT MORE PEOPLE WHO DIDNT HAVE ACCESS TO HEALTHCARE FULL COVERAGE! YEAH IT CAME AT A PRICE, BUT ALL INSURANCE DOES IN THIS COUNTRY!! SO HOW IS THAT PRESIDENT OBAMAS FAULT?!! OBAMACARE WAS ALOT BETTER THAN DUMB DONALD NOT HAVING A HEALTHCARE PLAN AT ALL!! WOULDN’T YOU THINK?!
March 27, 2020
It’s amazing designed for me to have a website, which is useful
designed for my know-how. thanks admin
March 29, 2020
With the clear value of cpap machines for those with sleep apnea, I think it is vitally important that all police and medical personnel be required to take a sleep study test if their BMI warrants it.
June 29, 2020
very informative
July 13, 2020
This is all money in someone’s pocket period.if you have no issues you should not be made to do this.perfect driving record or even like me local driver who goes home every night.it’s s joke period.
January 2, 2022
I WAS WRONGFULLY DIAGNOSED FOR SLEEP APNEA WHILE AT SCHNEIDER, AN IT HAS BEEN A PAIN IN MY ASS EVER SINCE!! THIS WHOLE SLEEP APNEA THING IS FOR THESE TRUCKING COMPANIES TO PARTNER WITH THEIR FRIENDS IN THE MEDICAL FIELD AN SELL THESE DAMN MACHINES AN THEY SPLIT PROFITS, IS WHAT I THINK! I WAS SENT HOME WITH A HOME TEST, THAT YOU PUT ON YOUR FINGER AN THIS CONTRAPTION AROUND YOUR CHEST, AN YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO SLEEP WITH THIS THING ON AN TAKE IT BACK THE VERY NEXT DAY!! OK, THAT WHOLE NIGHT I COULDN’T SLEEP AT ALL, I MEAN I LITERALLY COULDNT, GO TO SLEEP BECAUSE THIS WHOLE THING WAS A DISTACTION, BECAUSE MY MAIN FOCUS WAS ON THIS WEIRD MACHINE, THAT I HAVE NEVER HAD TO USE A DAY IN MY LIFE BEFORE OF 40 YRS, NOW ALL OF A SUDDEN JUST BECAUSE SCHNEIDER FEELS I WOULD BE A GOOD CANDIDATE FOR THIS MACHINE, I HAVE TO BE TESTED FOR SLEEP APNEA?!! I HAVE NEVER HAD A PROBLEM SLEEPING BEFORE, STILL DONT, UNTIL I HAVE TO USE THIS MACHINE!! THIS MACHINE IS THE ONLY THING AFFECTING MY SLEEP! IT’S A DEFINITE DISTRACTION! AN NOW THE MORE I USE IT, ITS STARTING TO MAKE HAVE PAINS IN MY ARMS! I’M NOT SURE WHAT IS, BUT ALL OF THESE ISSUES COULD HAVE BEEN AVOIDED IF THIS MACHINE WAS NOT A FACTOR!! I’M 5’10, MUSCULAR BUILD, AN I EXERCIS3 REGULARLY, BUT SCHNEIDERS MEDICAL EXAMINER SAID THAT I WASNT OVER WEIGHT, BUT BECAUSE I HAD AN 18 INCH NECKLINE THAT I HAD SLEEP APNEA!! BULLSHIT!! I THINK MAYBE MY 18 INCH NECKLINE COMES FROM ALL THOSE UPSIDE PUSH-UPS I USE TO DO ON THE WALL WHILE I WAS A RUNNING BK IN HIGH SCHOOL!! THAT IS WHAT I THINK!! AN NOW THIS MACHINE IS DIRECTLY AFFECTING MY LIVELIHOOD, I HAVEN’T BEEN ABLE TO WORK SINCE JUNE BECAUSE OF THIS MACHINE!! WHAT I’M GOING TO DO NOW IS ORDER THE SAME KIND OF HOME TEST THAT SCHNEIDER SENT ME HOME WITH, THAT COST $150 ONLINE, BECAUSE I CANT AFFORD THE $2500 SLEEP STUDY TEST THAT MY DOCTOR RECOMMENDED ME TO, AN MY CURRENT INSURANCE WILL NOT COVER, SO YEAH! I THINK THIS WHOLE SHIT IS A BIG SCAM, AN IF YOU LOOK AT THE DRIVER SHORTAGE GOING 9N RIGHT NOW, YOU WOULD THINK THIS INDUSTRY WOULD CUT THIS PETTY HUSTLE OF DRIVERS OUT, AN APPRECIATE A REAL DRIVER WITH 10 YRS EXPERIENCE, WITH NOT 1 ACCIDENT OR 1 TICKET!
April 10, 2022
What do you do for income when the DOT doctor will not certify you and the sleep testing center won’t have an open appointment for three months? It is not grounds for unemployment and it is not grounds for short term disability. Not to mention, depending on your health insurance, you may have to pay for the sleep study yourself! My brother is going through this now. Doctor will not issue a temp. certificate for three or six months while arranging for the test.