A Louisiana-based CDL holder wrote in following Overdrive reporting on the upcoming deadline to “self-certify” with your licensing state that you have a valid medical card.
I’m confused about this new medical card. Do I have to go to DMV and get a different kind of card? Everyone I talk to in Louisiana has never heard of this?
The “new medical card” will be your CDL, part of the so-called “Medical CDL” rule’s long implementation, following which your medical certification will be electronically accessible to enforcement officers via your CDL, essentially, eliminating the need for drivers to carry paper medical cards.
Originally scheduled for implementation at the end of January 2012, as we reported in 2011, states’ slow progress on updating their own systems led to extensions. As reported Dec. 17, Jan. 30 is the final deadline.
And if you don’t report your medical certification before the deadline, as wrote one commenter under the news, “your CDL privileges will be compromised.”
The American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators has built a handy guide to all states containing contact information for drivers still needing to self-certify. Some states will accept certification information via email, and others have various procedures.
Some states, furthermore, have been collecting the information for many years already.
