Ariz. Admin. Code § 17-5-208

Current through Register Vol. 30, No. 45, November 8, 2024

Section R17-5-208 - Commercial Driver License Intrastate Medical Waiver; Intrastate Alternative Physical Qualification Standards for the Loss or Impairment of Limbs, or Monocular Vision

A. A person who is not physically qualified to drive a commercial motor vehicle in intrastate commerce due to loss of limb, limb impairment, or monocular vision, as provided under 49 CFR 391.41(b)(1), (b)(2), or (b)(10), but otherwise meets all other requirements under 49 CFR 391.41, may operate a commercial motor vehicle in intrastate commerce if granted an intrastate medical waiver by the Director. Application for an intrastate medical waiver shall be submitted according to subsection (B).

B. A driver applicant, or a driver applicant jointly with the motor carrier co-applicant that will employ the driver applicant, shall complete and submit the applicable intrastate medical waiver application to the Department's Medical Review Program, P.O. Box 2100, Mail Drop 818Z, Phoenix, AZ 85001-2100, with the following information as applicable:

1. Identify the applicant:

a. Name and complete address of the driver applicant;

b. Name and complete address of the motor carrier co-applicant;

c. U.S. Department of Transportation motor carrier identification number, if known; and

d. A description of the driver applicant's limb or visual impairment as applicable to the type of waiver being requested;

2. Describe the type of operation the driver applicant will be employed to perform, including the following information (if known):

a. Average period of time the driver will be driving or on duty, per day;

b. Type of commodities or cargo to be transported;

c. Type of driver operation (i.e., sleeper team, relay, owner operator, etc.); and

d. Number of years experience operating each type of commercial motor vehicle requested in the intrastate medical waiver application and total years of experience operating all types of commercial motor vehicles;

3. Describe the commercial motor vehicles the driver applicant intends to drive:

a. Truck, truck tractor, or bus make, model, and year (if known);

b. Drive train:

i. Transmission type (automatic or manual - if manual, designate number of forward speeds);

ii. Auxiliary transmission (if any) and number of forward speeds; and

iii. Rear axle (designate single speed, two-speed, or three-speed);

c. Type of brake system;

d. Steering, manual or power assisted;

e. Description of types of trailers (i.e., van, flatbed, cargo tank, drop frame, lowboy, or pole);

f. Number of semitrailers or full trailers to be towed at one time;

g. For commercial motor vehicles designed to transport passengers, indicate the seating capacity of the commercial motor vehicle; and

h. Description of any modifications made to the commercial motor vehicle for the driver applicant, attach photographs where applicable;

4. Include a certification statement:

a. The driver applicant shall certify that the driver applicant is otherwise qualified to drive a commercial motor vehicle under the regulations of 49 CFR 391 as adopted by the Department; and

b. In case of a co-applicant, the co-applicant motor carrier shall certify that the driver applicant is otherwise qualified to drive a commercial motor vehicle under the regulations of 49 CFR 391 as adopted by the Department; and

5. Contain signature of each applicant and date signed:

a. The driver applicant's signature; and

b. The motor carrier official's signature and title if the application has a co-applicant. Depending on the motor carrier's organizational structure (corporation, partnership, or proprietorship), the signer of the application shall be an officer, partner, or the proprietor.

C. The completed intrastate medical waiver application for a driver applicant not physically qualified to drive under 49 CFR 391.41(b)(1) or (b)(2) shall be accompanied by:

1. A copy of the medical examination report and medical examiner's certificate completed pursuant to 49 CFR 391.43;

2. The Department's medical waiver evaluation summary completed by either a board-qualified or board-certified physiatrist or orthopedic surgeon. The co-applicant motor carrier or the driver applicant shall provide the physiatrist or orthopedic surgeon with a description of the job-related tasks the driver applicant will be required to perform:

a. The medical waiver evaluation summary for a driver applicant not physically qualified to drive under 49 CFR 391.41(b)(1) shall include:

i. An assessment of the functional capabilities of the driver as they relate to the ability of the driver to perform normal tasks associated with operating a commercial motor vehicle; and

ii. A statement by a board-qualified or board-certified physiatrist or orthopedic surgeon that the applicant is capable of demonstrating precision prehension (e.g., manipulating knobs and switches) and power grasp prehension (e.g., holding and maneuvering the steering wheel) with each upper limb separately;

b. The medical waiver evaluation summary for a driver applicant not physically qualified to drive under 49 CFR 391.41(b)(2) shall include:

i. An explanation as to how and why the impairment interferes with the ability of the applicant to perform normal tasks associated with operating a commercial motor vehicle;

ii. An assessment and medical opinion of whether the condition will likely remain medically stable over the lifetime of the driver applicant; and

iii. A statement by a board-qualified or board-certified physiatrist or orthopedic surgeon that the applicant is capable of demonstrating precision prehension (e.g., manipulating knobs and switches) and power grasp prehension (e.g., holding and maneuvering the steering wheel) with each upper limb separately;

3. A description of the driver applicant's prosthetic or orthotic device worn, if any; and

4. A copy of the driver applicant's state motor vehicle driving record for the past three years from each state in which a motor vehicle driver license or permit has been obtained.

D. The completed intrastate medical waiver application for a driver applicant not physically qualified to drive under 49 CFR 391.41(b)(10) shall be accompanied by:

1. A copy of the medical examination report and medical examiner's certificate completed pursuant to 49 CFR 391.43;

2. A current vision examination report issued within the last 90 days from the date the report is received by the Department, completed by an ophthalmologist or optometrist. The report shall indicate that the applicant has distant visual acuity of at least 20/40 (Snellen), with or without a corrective lens, in one eye, and the applicant's dominant eye has a visual field of at least 70° peripheral measurement in one direction and 35° in the opposite direction of the horizontal meridian and the ability to distinguish the colors of a traffic signal or device showing standard red, green, and amber, as applicable to the type of medical waiver being requested;

3. A copy of the driver applicant's state motor vehicle driving record for the past three years from each state in which a motor vehicle driver license or permit has been obtained; and

4. A statement from the employer that the driver applicant has driven the type of vehicle for which the waiver is being requested for at least two of the previous five years.

E. Agreement. A motor carrier that employs a driver subject to an intrastate medical waiver granted by the Director under subsection (A), whether the waiver was granted unilaterally to the driver, or to the driver and co-applicant motor carrier, shall agree to:

1. Report to the Department's Medical Review Program, P.O. Box 2100, Mail Drop 818Z, Phoenix, AZ 85001-2100, in writing, any suspension, revocation, disqualification, or withdrawal of the subject driver's driver license or permit, and any accident, arrest, or conviction involving the driver within 30 days after the occurrence;

2. Provide to the Department's Medical Review Program, on request, any documents and information pertaining to the driving activities, accidents, arrests, convictions, and driver license or permit suspensions, revocations, disqualifications, or withdrawals involving the subject driver;

3. Evaluate the subject driver with a road test using the trailer types the motor carrier intends the driver to transport, or alternatively accept a certificate of a trailer road test from another motor carrier if the trailer types are similar, or accept the trailer road test completed during the skill performance evaluation if trailer types are similar to that of the prospective motor carrier;

4. Evaluate the subject driver for those non-driving safety related job tasks associated with each type of trailer that will be used and any other non-driving safety related or job related tasks unique to the operations of the employing motor carrier; and

5. Use the subject driver to operate the type of commercial motor vehicle indicated on the intrastate medical waiver only when the driver is in compliance with the conditions and limitations of the waiver.

F. A driver subject to an intrastate medical waiver, issued by the Director under subsection (A), shall supply each employing motor carrier with a copy of the intrastate medical waiver.

G. The Department may require the driver applicant to demonstrate the driver applicant's ability to safely operate the commercial motor vehicle the driver intends to drive.

H. If required by the Department during the application process, a driver applicant shall have a skill performance evaluation performed by a federally-certified state commercial driver license examiner at a Department commercial driver license facility when directed.

I. If the Director grants an intrastate medical waiver under subsection (A) to the driver applicant, the Department shall mail to the driver applicant and co-applicant motor carrier (if applicable) written approval of the intrastate medical waiver describing the terms, conditions, and limitations of the waiver.

J. The intrastate medical waiver granted by the Director under subsection (A) shall identify:

1. The power unit (bus, truck, truck tractor) for which the waiver is granted; and

2. The trailer type used in the skill performance evaluation, if applicable, without limiting the waiver to that specific trailer type.

K. A subject driver may use the intrastate medical waiver with other trailer types if the driver successfully completes:

1. A trailer road test administered by the motor carrier under subsection (E)(3) for each type of trailer, and

2. A non-driving safety related or job related task evaluation administered by the motor carrier under subsection (E)(4).

L. The intrastate medical waiver granted by the Director under subsection (A) is:

1. Valid for a period of not more than two years from the date of issuance;

2. Renewable 30 days prior to the expiration date; and

3. Transferable from an original motor carrier co-applicant employer to a new motor carrier employer or to the subject driver, as a unilateral applicant if becoming self-employed, upon written notification to the Department's Medical Review Program, P.O. Box 2100, Mail Drop 818Z, Phoenix, AZ 85001-2100, stating the new employer's name and the type of equipment to be driven.

M. An intrastate medical waiver granted by the Director under subsection (A) to a driver applicant for monocular vision under subsection (D), shall prohibit the subject driver from transporting:

1. Passengers for hire; and

2. Reportable quantities of hazardous substances, manifested hazardous wastes, and hazardous material required to be placarded.

N. A driver subject to an intrastate medical waiver, issued by the Director under subsection (A), shall have the intrastate medical waiver (or a legible copy) in the subject driver's possession while on duty.

O. The motor carrier employing a subject driver shall maintain a copy of the intrastate medical waiver in its driver qualification file and retain the copy in the motor carrier's file for a period of three years after the driver's employment is terminated.

P. A driver subject to an intrastate medical waiver, issued by the Director under subsection (A) to an applicant for monocular vision under subsection (D), must be physically examined every year and shall submit the following to the Department's Medical Review Program, P.O. Box 2100, Mail Drop 818Z, Phoenix, AZ 85001-2100:

1. A vision examination report issued within the last 90 days from the date the report is received by the Department, as prescribed under subsection (D)(2); and

2. A current medical examination report and medical examiner's certificate completed pursuant to 49 CFR 391.43 within the past year.

Q. A driver subject to an intrastate medical waiver, or a driver subject to an intrastate medical waiver jointly with a motor carrier coapplicant, may renew an intrastate medical waiver by submitting to the Department's Medical Review Program, P.O. Box 2100, Mail Drop 818Z, Phoenix, AZ 85001-2100, a new intrastate medical waiver application. The intrastate medical waiver application shall contain the following:

1. Name and complete address of the motor carrier currently employing the applicant;

2. Name and complete address of the subject driver;

3. Total miles driven under the current intrastate medical waiver;

4. Number of accidents incurred while driving under the current intrastate medical waiver, including the date of each accident, number of fatalities, number of injuries, and the estimated dollar amount of any property damage;

5. A current medical examination report and medical examiner's certificate completed pursuant to 49 CFR 391.43;

6. A current medical examination or evaluation as applicable to the medical condition:

a. A current medical waiver evaluation summary, as prescribed under subsection (C)(2), for a driver with a loss of limb or limb impairment; or

b. A current vision examination report, as prescribed under subsection (D)(2), for a driver with monocular vision;

7. A copy of the subject driver's current state motor vehicle driving record for the period of time the current intrastate medical waiver has been in effect;

8. Notification of any change in the type of tractor the driver will operate;

9. Subject driver's signature and date signed; and

10. Motor carrier co-applicant's signature and date signed (if applicable).

R. The Director may deny an application for the intrastate medical waiver or may grant the waiver in whole or in part and issue the waiver subject to such terms, conditions, and limitations as the Director deems consistent with the public interest.

S. The Director may revoke an intrastate medical waiver after providing the driver subject to an intrastate medical waiver written notice of the proposed revocation and a reasonable opportunity to request a hearing pursuant to the procedure prescribed under 17 A.A.C. 1, Article 5. The Director may revoke an intrastate medical waiver if the:

1. Driver subject to an intrastate medical waiver, or co-applicant (if applicable), or both provided false information in the application,

2. Driver subject to an intrastate medical waiver, or co-applicant (if applicable), or both failed to comply with the terms and conditions of the intrastate medical waiver, or

3. Issuance of the intrastate medical waiver resulted in a lower level of safety than before the waiver was granted.

T. If the enforcement of any provision of this Section would result in the loss or disqualification of federal funding for any state agency or program, that provision is invalid.

Ariz. Admin. Code § R17-5-208

New Section recodified from R17-4-435.06 at 7 A.A.R. 3483, effective July 20, 2001 (Supp. 01-3). Amended by final rulemaking at 8 A.A.R. 3249, effective July 10, 2002 (Supp. 02-3). Section repealed; new Section made by final rulemaking at 14 A.A.R. 3797, effective November 8, 2008 (Supp. 08-3). Amended by final rulemaking at 17 A.A.R. 1691, effective August 2, 2011 (Supp. 11-3). Amended by final rulemaking at 20 A.A.R. 2382, effective 8/5/2014. Amended by final rulemaking at 24 A.A.R. 1549, effective 5/1/2018. Amended by final rulemaking at 27 A.A.R. 2734, effective 11/2/2021.