The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration on Monday, July 14, issued a waiver that allows commercial drivers to continue to rely on a paper copy of the medical examiner’s certificate (MEC) as proof of the driver’s medical certification for up to 15 days after the certificate was issued.
The waiver follows the agency’s implementation of its National Registry II rule (NRII) that makes the medical certificate process electronic -- with medical examiners transmitting exam results to FMCSA via the National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners and FMCSA transmitting the results to state driver’s licensing agencies to post to the driver’s motor vehicle record (MVR).
Since the June 23 implementation of the rule, however, there has been some confusion around the rule, with anecdotal evidence that some medical examiners were not aware of the changes taking place, and a dozen states that are still not compliant with the rule.
[Related: FMCSA’s electronic medical certification system takes effect -- in most states]
With its July 14 waiver, FMCSA is giving CDL holders, CLP applicants and motor carriers more leeway in the event that their medical card is not properly transmitted electronically if they are domiciled in a state that is compliant with the rule.
“As of the date of this waiver, 38 states and the District of Columbia have implemented NRII,” FMCSA said. “Twelve states have not yet implemented NRII and are continuing to rely on the paper MEC. FMCSA is aware that during this initial period of transition to NRII, some CLP applicants and CDL holders may face delays in the time between receipt of their medical certification and the update to their CDLIS driver MVR as medical examiners and [states] onboard to the new system.”
FMCSA’s waiver is effective until Oct. 12. “Drivers with valid medical certification and their employers should not be penalized for delays outside of their control as medical examiners and SDLAs transition to a new system,” the agency said.
[Related: How to stay compliant amid confusion around new electronic med cert rule]
This waiver covers interstate CDL holders, CLP holders, and motor carriers between July 14 and Oct. 12.
It does not apply to a driver if the driver does not have a copy of his or her current, valid MEC on his or her person that was issued by a certified medical examiner within the prior 15 days, FMCSA noted.
The waiver does not apply to a motor carrier if the company does not have a copy of the driver’s current, valid MEC that was issued by a certified medical examiner within the prior 15 days.
[Related: What fleets should know about recent regulatory changes]
