E Logs And Sleep Apnea From Trucknews.com
Topic 105 | Page 1
I'm really surprised electronic logs aren't already mandated. They've been around a long time and everyone has always known they would eventually be mandatory, but it's a slow process getting the legislation through.
And sleep apnea is "all the rage" in trucking these days.
I think they should start making physical fitness all the rage for everyone, starting in elementary school. Gym class shouldn't be just kicking a red ball at someone's face. It should involve regimented exercise. It would have far greater benefits than say yet another class on the Ancient Egyptian pyramids or trying to plow through yet another Shakespeare book.
Our society as a whole is such a mess health-wise that they believe the current generation of children will be the first generation in human history with a shorter life expectancy than the previous generations. We're going the wrong way! 
Electronic Logs:
Electronic Onboard Recorder
Electronic Logbook
A device which records the amount of time a vehicle has been driven. If the vehicle is not being driven, the operator will manually input whether or not he/she is on duty or not.
Sleep Apnea:
A physical disorder in which you have pauses in your breathing, or take shallow breaths, during sleep. These pauses can last anywhere from a few seconds to a few minutes. Normal breathing will usually resume, sometimes with a loud choking sound or snort.
In obstructive sleep apnea, your airways become blocked or collapse during sleep, causing the pauses and shallow breathing.
It is a chronic condition that will require ongoing management. It affects about 18 million people in the U.S.
The industry has had plenty of warning that an ELD mandate was in development. However, there have been a couple setbacks along the way. One was a successful legal challenge by the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA), which argued that such devices can be used to harass drivers into working longer hours.
I don't know how OOIDA can even say those words out loud with a straight face. I don't know how they got through the court proceedings without snickering the whole time.
OOIDA:
Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association
Who They Are
OOIDA is an international trade association representing the interests of independent owner-operators and professional drivers on all issues that affect truckers. The over 150,000 members of OOIDA are men and women in all 50 states and Canada who collectively own and/or operate more than 240,000 individual heavy-duty trucks and small truck fleets.
Their Mission
The mission of OOIDA is to serve owner-operators, small fleets and professional truckers; to work for a business climate where truckers are treated equally and fairly; to promote highway safety and responsibility among all highway users; and to promote a better business climate and efficiency for all truck operators.
HOS:
Hours Of Service
HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.
The industry has had plenty of warning that an ELD mandate was in development. However, there have been a couple setbacks along the way. One was a successful legal challenge by the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA), which argued that such devices can be used to harass drivers into working longer hours.
They probably just brought in a team of liars...erm, I mean lawyers to speak for them.
OOIDA:
Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association
Who They Are
OOIDA is an international trade association representing the interests of independent owner-operators and professional drivers on all issues that affect truckers. The over 150,000 members of OOIDA are men and women in all 50 states and Canada who collectively own and/or operate more than 240,000 individual heavy-duty trucks and small truck fleets.
Their Mission
The mission of OOIDA is to serve owner-operators, small fleets and professional truckers; to work for a business climate where truckers are treated equally and fairly; to promote highway safety and responsibility among all highway users; and to promote a better business climate and efficiency for all truck operators.
HOS:
Hours Of Service
HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.
An important question about the sleep apnea issue is who will pay for the sleep study and how much it will cost. These tests cost $1500 on up. If you don't have insurance or your insurance doesn't cover it, that is a pretty hefty amount to come up with to get a medical card and keep your CDL. And if the medical clinics see this as a cash cow to pad their bottom line, the docs will start making more and more people get the testing, whether they really need it or not. There are already allegations that some clinics already do this.
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
- Any combination of vehicles with a gross combined weight rating (GCWR) of 26,001 or more pounds, providing the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of the vehicle being towed is in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any single vehicle with a GVWR of 26,001 or more pounds, or any such vehicle towing another not in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any vehicle, regardless of size, designed to transport 16 or more persons, including the driver.
- Any vehicle required by federal regulations to be placarded while transporting hazardous materials.
Sleep Apnea:
A physical disorder in which you have pauses in your breathing, or take shallow breaths, during sleep. These pauses can last anywhere from a few seconds to a few minutes. Normal breathing will usually resume, sometimes with a loud choking sound or snort.
In obstructive sleep apnea, your airways become blocked or collapse during sleep, causing the pauses and shallow breathing.
It is a chronic condition that will require ongoing management. It affects about 18 million people in the U.S.
An important question about the sleep apnea issue is who will pay for the sleep study and how much it will cost. These tests cost $1500 on up. If you don't have insurance or your insurance doesn't cover it, that is a pretty hefty amount to come up with to get a medical card and keep your CDL. And if the medical clinics see this as a cash cow to pad their bottom line, the docs will start making more and more people get the testing, whether they really need it or not. There are already allegations that some clinics already do this.
I'll keep you updated on this. I was only given a 6month card from the clinic that is contracted with who will be my employer at the end of next week. Within 6months I'll need to do the sleep study. Right now I know there is two different ways this study can happen 1) going into a clinic (most likely it will have to be approved) and sleeping there for a night and they will conduct test. 2) there is "take home" procedure where you have everything monitored being hooked up with sensors on your fingers. The docs at the clinic where my wife works will order the 2nd test for their clients. I could also get into the Mayo Clinic here in Rochester to have the over-night test done. But i'm guessing i'll end up at an "approved clinic" - just seems like a way for SOMEONE to be making some money. I'll have to find out...
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
- Any combination of vehicles with a gross combined weight rating (GCWR) of 26,001 or more pounds, providing the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of the vehicle being towed is in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any single vehicle with a GVWR of 26,001 or more pounds, or any such vehicle towing another not in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any vehicle, regardless of size, designed to transport 16 or more persons, including the driver.
- Any vehicle required by federal regulations to be placarded while transporting hazardous materials.
Sleep Apnea:
A physical disorder in which you have pauses in your breathing, or take shallow breaths, during sleep. These pauses can last anywhere from a few seconds to a few minutes. Normal breathing will usually resume, sometimes with a loud choking sound or snort.
In obstructive sleep apnea, your airways become blocked or collapse during sleep, causing the pauses and shallow breathing.
It is a chronic condition that will require ongoing management. It affects about 18 million people in the U.S.
Here is a great article on this topic by Tanya Bons, the owner of Spirit CDL Training, a private truck driving school outside of Chicago:
In that article she covers some interesting statistics and discusses the money side of it, talking about how the clinics are pushing hard for legislation to mandate testing because it would obviously be a gigantic pile of money in their pockets.
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
- Any combination of vehicles with a gross combined weight rating (GCWR) of 26,001 or more pounds, providing the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of the vehicle being towed is in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any single vehicle with a GVWR of 26,001 or more pounds, or any such vehicle towing another not in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any vehicle, regardless of size, designed to transport 16 or more persons, including the driver.
- Any vehicle required by federal regulations to be placarded while transporting hazardous materials.
Sleep Apnea:
A physical disorder in which you have pauses in your breathing, or take shallow breaths, during sleep. These pauses can last anywhere from a few seconds to a few minutes. Normal breathing will usually resume, sometimes with a loud choking sound or snort.
In obstructive sleep apnea, your airways become blocked or collapse during sleep, causing the pauses and shallow breathing.
It is a chronic condition that will require ongoing management. It affects about 18 million people in the U.S.
I was sent for a sleep study by my doctor. I don't have sleep apnea , but I do have Chronic Pain Disorder
....go figure. So now they tell me that I can take narcotics to help me sleep. No Thank You.
Sleep Apnea:
A physical disorder in which you have pauses in your breathing, or take shallow breaths, during sleep. These pauses can last anywhere from a few seconds to a few minutes. Normal breathing will usually resume, sometimes with a loud choking sound or snort.
In obstructive sleep apnea, your airways become blocked or collapse during sleep, causing the pauses and shallow breathing.
It is a chronic condition that will require ongoing management. It affects about 18 million people in the U.S.
UPDATE: Got a call today and I'll doing my sleep test while at orientation. The company will pay for the test. They wanted to give me a heads up before I arrive. I'll take the test kit with me back to my hotel room and sleep. They will be able to get the results and if I have sleep apnea then they will give me up to $600 for the purchase of the c-pap machine. That way I am able to take the machine with me when I head out w/ the trainer.
Sleep Apnea:
A physical disorder in which you have pauses in your breathing, or take shallow breaths, during sleep. These pauses can last anywhere from a few seconds to a few minutes. Normal breathing will usually resume, sometimes with a loud choking sound or snort.
In obstructive sleep apnea, your airways become blocked or collapse during sleep, causing the pauses and shallow breathing.
It is a chronic condition that will require ongoing management. It affects about 18 million people in the U.S.
UPDATE: Got a call today and I'll doing my sleep test while at orientation. The company will pay for the test. They wanted to give me a heads up before I arrive. I'll take the test kit with me back to my hotel room and sleep. They will be able to get the results and if I have sleep apnea then they will give me up to $600 for the purchase of the c-pap machine. That way I am able to take the machine with me when I head out w/ the trainer.
Hey, that sounds like a good deal all the way around. Here's to hoping you won't need the machine 
Sleep Apnea:
A physical disorder in which you have pauses in your breathing, or take shallow breaths, during sleep. These pauses can last anywhere from a few seconds to a few minutes. Normal breathing will usually resume, sometimes with a loud choking sound or snort.
In obstructive sleep apnea, your airways become blocked or collapse during sleep, causing the pauses and shallow breathing.
It is a chronic condition that will require ongoing management. It affects about 18 million people in the U.S.
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Electronic logging, sleep apnea screening requirements still on US lawmakers' radar
TEXT SIZE By: James Menzies 2013-02-27 SEATTLE, Wash. -- It could be 2015 or 2016 before the US mandates the use of electronic logging devices (ELDs) to track hours-of-service, according to former FMCSA administrator and current principal of TransSafe Consulting, Annette Sandberg.
However, there are good reasons for carriers to consider using ELDs or electronic on-board recorders (EOBRs) before they are mandated, she added, when speaking during a Zonar-sponsored Webinar on coming regulatory changes.
A rulemaking on ELDs (the terminology was changed from EOBRs at the behest of industry, to ensure the regulations would pertain only to the collection of HoS data, and not other information collected by EOBRs) is likely to be published by October of this year, Sandberg said. That would be followed by a 60-day comment period, with a final rule posted sometime in 2014. It would take another one or two years to fully implement the new requirement, Sandberg added.
The industry has had plenty of warning that an ELD mandate was in development. However, there have been a couple setbacks along the way. One was a successful legal challenge by the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA), which argued that such devices can be used to harass drivers into working longer hours. The ruling forced FMCSA to go back to the drawing board, host a number of listening sessions and investigate the potential for harassment resulting from the use of ELDs.
The other setback, Sandberg said, was the result of concerns in the industry that not all devices on the market will be able to meet the requirements of the regulation. Currently, manufacturers of ELDs are self-certified. Sandberg said plans are underway to introduce a third-party certification process, so that fleet customers can be sure the products they’re buying will be compliant with the regulation.
“The Agency and others indicated there might need to be a more robust certification process, where they have a third-party do the certification and make sure all the devices on the market are capable of doing what they say they’ll do,” Sandberg explained.
Despite the delays, Sandberg said carriers she has been working with through her consulting firm are seeing benefits in transitioning to electronic logs early.
“For hours-of-service, the biggest hurdle is getting drivers away from the paper, getting them to understand these devices make their lives much easier. Quite frankly, a lot of drivers don’t understand all the nuances with the rules - particularly with these changes coming in July - and these devices will do it for you. They’ll tell the driver when they need to take a break, how many hours they have left, when they’re out of hours, when they’re potentially in violation,” Sandberg said. “I strongly encourage carriers to look at these electronic systems and whether they can fit into their model, because I think it makes drivers’ lives easier and it certainly makes the carrier’s life easier as it relates to compliance and proving compliance.”
Sleep apnea
Another impending rule that will affect carriers operating in the US is the launch of mandatory sleep apnea screening for high-risk drivers. Talks are underway to decide whether to require all drivers to be screened as part of their medical, or whether guidance should be provide that would require drivers with certain physical attributes (based on neck size or body mass index , for example) to be tested for the condition.
The FMCSA last year issued a guidance based on body mass index, then quickly retracted it. Sandberg said it’s expected the FMCSA will issue a rulemaking, opening it to public comment before coming out with a final rule.
“This is going to be a very big issue for anybody in the industry, simply because stats out there show truck drivers have a much higher incidence of obesity (than the general public), which is a big indicator of them being likely to have apnea,” Sandberg explained. “We’re waiting to see what this might do, but it will increase the cost for anyone that runs a commercial motor vehicle fleet and has a lot of drivers on staff, as almost every carrier would have to test at least a portion of their drivers for apnea.”
EOBR:
Electronic Onboard Recorder
Electronic Logbook
A device which records the amount of time a vehicle has been driven. If the vehicle is not being driven, the operator will manually input whether or not he/she is on duty or not.
Electronic Logs:
Electronic Onboard Recorder
Electronic Logbook
A device which records the amount of time a vehicle has been driven. If the vehicle is not being driven, the operator will manually input whether or not he/she is on duty or not.
EOBRs:
Electronic Onboard Recorder
Electronic Logbook
A device which records the amount of time a vehicle has been driven. If the vehicle is not being driven, the operator will manually input whether or not he/she is on duty or not.
Commercial Motor Vehicle:
A commercial motor vehicle is any vehicle used in commerce to transport passengers or property with either:
CSA:
Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA)
The CSA is a Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) initiative to improve large truck and bus safety and ultimately reduce crashes, injuries, and fatalities that are related to commercial motor vehicle
FMCSA:
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
The FMCSA was established within the Department of Transportation on January 1, 2000. Their primary mission is to prevent commercial motor vehicle-related fatalities and injuries.
What Does The FMCSA Do?
Sleep Apnea:
A physical disorder in which you have pauses in your breathing, or take shallow breaths, during sleep. These pauses can last anywhere from a few seconds to a few minutes. Normal breathing will usually resume, sometimes with a loud choking sound or snort.
In obstructive sleep apnea, your airways become blocked or collapse during sleep, causing the pauses and shallow breathing.
It is a chronic condition that will require ongoing management. It affects about 18 million people in the U.S.
Body Mass Index:
Body mass index (BMI)
BMI is a formula that uses weight and height to estimate body fat. For most people, BMI provides a reasonable estimate of body fat. The BMI's biggest weakness is that it doesn't consider individual factors such as bone or muscle mass. BMI may:
It's quite common, especially for men, to fall into the "overweight" category if you happen to be stronger than average. If you're pretty strong but in good shape then pay no attention.
Dm:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.Fm:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.OOIDA:
Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association
Who They Are
OOIDA is an international trade association representing the interests of independent owner-operators and professional drivers on all issues that affect truckers. The over 150,000 members of OOIDA are men and women in all 50 states and Canada who collectively own and/or operate more than 240,000 individual heavy-duty trucks and small truck fleets.
Their Mission
The mission of OOIDA is to serve owner-operators, small fleets and professional truckers; to work for a business climate where truckers are treated equally and fairly; to promote highway safety and responsibility among all highway users; and to promote a better business climate and efficiency for all truck operators.
HOS:
Hours Of Service
HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.