The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) officially launched a new electronic transmission process for commercial vehicle driver medical exams in an effort to reduce fraud and “hassle” for truck drivers.
Effective Monday, June 23, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) Medical Examiner’s Certification Integration (NRII) rule went into effect, “marking a major advancement in the safety and integrity of the commercial driver licensing process,” according to USDOT. “This new process will replace outdated paper documents that are ripe for fraud, a hassle for truck drivers to maintain, and harder for law enforcement to assess.”
Under the new rule, medical examiners must electronically submit the results of a Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) or Commercial Learner’s Permit (CLP) applicant’s physical exam directly to the FMCSA’s National Registry.
The rule requires medical examiners to submit the results by midnight of the calendar day following the exam.
The FMCSA then electronically transmits the exam results to State Driver’s Licensing Agencies (SDLA), eliminating the need for CDL and CLP holders to submit their own Medical Examiner Certificates (MEC) to SDLAs. SDLAs will post the information exam information received from FMCSA on the Commercial Driver’s License Information System (CDLIS) driver motor vehicle record (MVR).
Medical examiners will no longer be required to issue paper copies of MECs with NRII now in effect.
Under the new rule, motor carriers are no longer required to verify that an MEC issued to a CLP applicant or CDL holder was issued by a medical examiner on the National Registry. Motor carriers can no longer use a paper MEC as proof that a driver is medically certified. They must instead use records obtained from the CDLIS MVR to verify that the driver is medically qualified to operate a commercial vehicle.
The new rule will eliminate burdensome paper records, officials say, and will also provide law enforcement with real-time access to a driver’s medical certification status during roadside inspections.
“This new digitalized system will make life easier for lawful truck drivers and harder for bad actors who want to commit fraud. It will also enhance safety on our roads and ensure law enforcement has access to the real time data they need to do their jobs. America First means safety first,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy.
“Safety is at the core of all we do at FMCSA,” said FMCSA Chief Counsel Jesse Elison. “By integrating electronic medical certification records directly into state-managed systems, NRII helps ensure only qualified drivers are on our roads while giving our state and enforcement partners the real-time information needed to do their jobs more effectively. Implementation of this rule embodies FMCSA’s commitment to commonsense, efficient, and effective solutions that enhance safety and accountability.
The FMCSA’s Medical Examiner’s Certification Integration rule was published in 2015 with a compliance date initially set for June 22, 2018. Due to IT systems issues, this compliance date pushed to June 22, 2021, and then to June 23, 2025.
The FMCSA released several proactive steps drivers should take to ensure a successful transmission of medical certification information from the National Registry to SDLAs. Take a look at the agency’s tips below.
For more information on the new medical certification transmission process, click here.