Denial of Exemption Applications; Epilepsy and Seizure Disorders

Larry W. Minor
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
9 September 2016

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 175 (Friday, September 9, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 62553-62554]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-21720]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

[Docket No. FMCSA-2015-0119]


Denial of Exemption Applications; Epilepsy and Seizure Disorders

AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of denial.

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SUMMARY: FMCSA announces its decision to deny applications from four 
individuals who requested an exemption from the Federal Motor Carrier 
Safety Regulations (FMCSRs) prohibiting persons with a clinical 
diagnosis of epilepsy or any other condition that is likely to cause a 
loss of consciousness or any loss of ability to operate a commercial 
motor vehicle (CMV) from operating CMVs in interstate commerce.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Christine A. Hydock, Chief, Medical 
Programs Division, (202) 366-4001, fmcsamedical@dot.gov, FMCSA, 
Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Room W64-224, 
Washington, DC 20590-0001. Office hours are 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., e.t., 
Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. If you have questions 
regarding viewing or submitting material to the docket, contact Docket 
Services, telephone (202) 366-9826.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Electronic Access

    You may see all the comments online through the Federal Document 
Management System (FDMS) at: http://www.regulations.gov.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or 
comments, go to http://www.regulations.gov and/or Room W12-140 on the 
ground level of the West Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., 
Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, 
except Federal holidays.
    Privacy Act: In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 553(c), DOT solicits 
comments from the public to better inform its rulemaking process. DOT 
posts these comments, without edit, including any personal information 
the commenter provides, to http://www.regulations.gov, as described in 
the system of records notice (DOT/ALL-14 FDMS), which can be reviewed 
at http://www.dot.gov/privacy.

II. Background

    On November 12, 2015, FMCSA published a notice announcing receipt 
of applications from 13 individuals requesting an exemption from the 
prohibition against persons with a clinical diagnosis of epilepsy or 
any other condition that is likely to cause a loss of consciousness or 
any loss of ability to operate a CMV in interstate commerce and 
requested comments from the public (80 FR 70065). The public comment 
period closed on December 14, 2015, and seven comments were received.
    FMCSA has evaluated the eligibility of these applicants and 
concluded that granting four of the 13 exemptions would not provide a 
level of safety that would be equivalent to or greater than, the level 
of safety that would be obtained by complying with the regulation 49 
CFR 391.41(b)(8). A final notice announcing the decision to grant nine 
of the 13 exemptions and providing a response to the seven comments 
received was published on May 9, 2016 (FR 80 28130).

III. Basis for Exemption Determination

    Under 49 U.S.C. 31136(e) and 31315(b), FMCSA may grant an exemption 
from the Federal epilepsy standard for a renewable two-year period if 
it finds ``such exemption is likely achieve a level of safety that is 
equivalent to or greater than the level that would be achieved absent 
such exemption.''
    The Agency's decision regarding these exemption applications is 
based on an individualized assessment of each applicant's medical 
information, including the root cause of the respective seizure(s) and 
medical information about the applicant's seizure history, the length 
of time that has elapsed since the individual's last seizure, the 
stability of each individual's treatment regimen and the duration of 
time on or off of anti-seizure medication. The Agency considered the 
2007 recommendations of the Agency's Medical Expert Panel (MEP). The 
January 15, 2013 Federal Register notice (78 FR 3069) provides the 
current MEP recommendations which is the criteria the Agency uses to 
make decisions regarding seizure exemptions.

IV. Conclusion

    The Agency has determined that these four applicants do not satisfy 
the criteria eligibility or meet the terms and conditions for a Federal 
exemption and granting these exemptions would not provide a level of 
safety that would be equivalent to or greater than, the level of safety 
that would be obtained by complying with the regulation 49 CFR 
391.41(b)(8). Therefore, the applicants in this notice have been denied 
an

[[Page 62554]]

exemption from the physical qualification standards in 49 CFR 
391.41(b)(8).
    Each applicant has, prior to this notice, received a letter of 
final disposition regarding his/her exemption request. Those decision 
letters fully outlined the basis for the denial and constitutes final 
action by the Agency. This notice summarizes the Agency's recent 
denials as required under 49 U.S.C. 31315(b)(4) by periodically 
publishing names and reasons for denial. The following drivers were 
listed previously in Federal Register Notice FMCSA-2015-0119 published 
on November 12, 2015:
    Christopher Wayne Beaver--Mr. Beaver has a history of a single 
seizure in 2014.
    He takes anti-seizure medication. He does not meet the MEP 
guidelines at this time.
    Daniel Gerald Bretz, Jr.--Mr. Bretz has a history of a seizure 
disorder. His last seizure was in 2011. He takes anti-seizure 
medication. He does not meet the MEP guidelines at this time.
    Patrick P. Griffis, Sr.--Mr. Griffis has a history of two seizures. 
His last seizure was in 2015. He takes anti-seizure medication. He does 
not meet the MEP guidelines at this time.
    Trevor Bryant Jacobson--Mr. Jacobson has a history of a single 
seizure prior to the removal of a benign brain tumor. He takes anti-
seizure medication. He does not meet the MEP guidelines at this time.

    Issued on: August 26, 2016.
Larry W. Minor,
Associate Administrator for Policy.
[FR Doc. 2016-21720 Filed 9-8-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4910-EX-P