Poll: Should It Be Law That Those With OSA Report It To Gov?

No. Those of us that are being treated successfully are not the problem. As has been said already, generally it's the undiagnosed and the quitters that cause the problems.

wonder if this Poll isn't a little skewed since everyone going to take it either has OSA or is in the sleep medicine field.

Put that Poll on myspace or other website and I bet the results would be 100% different.

But the results can almost be compared to calling your Homeowners Insurance and reporting a little "black mold" or water damage.

See what happens to your insurance rates and policy after you do. Then you get put on the insurance industry "black list" that stays with you and your home even if you switch insurance companies. Mortgage company says I have to have insurance, but because of mold or past water damage no one will insure it.

Adding OSA compliance to DMV records does pretty much the same thing it adds another stigma to the disorder.

Pretty soon patients will be much better off NOT getting the OSA diagnosis because of all the stigma associated with it, it impacts your ability to get Life Insurance, drives the rates up if accepted, hold down certain jobs and now how you drive and the list goes on and on.

Sorry about the little kid that got killed, but kids get killed every day by drivers when they run out in front of the car and cannot stop in time and by other means.

Would this poll generate as much interest if it was a terrorist that got killed by a non-compliant OSA driver?

Heck no, compliance would drop by 100%

I don't think we need to report but I do believe that doctors should be required to report this in the same way they are supposed to report seizure disorders. This is not something that will be picked up at license renewal. However, for those who are compliant, this might be a needless intrusion. I'm on the fence about this one. I know people who drive impaired from lack of sleep and have just been very lucky. And even for those of us compliant, we all know about those tossy-turny nights that leave us wiped out. This is why I'm not running for president....big decisions make my head hurt.

motherall wrote:I don't think we need to report but I do believe that doctors should be required to report this in the same way they are supposed to report seizure disorders. This is not something that will be picked up at license renewal. However, for those who are compliant, this might be a needless intrusion. I'm on the fence about this one. I know people who drive impaired from lack of sleep and have just been very lucky. And even for those of us compliant, we all know about those tossy-turny nights that leave us wiped out. This is why I'm not running for president....big decisions make my head hurt.

In California, if you have a seizure disorder your doctor will automatically report it directly to the DMV even without your knowledge once they have obtained the diagnosis.

It doesn't matter if you think that doctor was a quack and you wanted to obtain a 2nd opinion first from another doctor where it was found maybe you didn't have the disorder. But now you are labeled as such by the first doctor. You now have to go up against a DMV appointed medical team to get your driving privileges back.

Driving is a privilege NOT a right. If your morals are in the right place you treat OSA driving like you do with alcohol. If I had too much to drink I don't drive or I call a cab. But people abuse that everyday with alcohol.

I just don't want to see my car insurance rates go up because I have OSA, just another excuse for them to get more money from you, that is all it is about.

Do we honestly believe that the child death rate would change by reporting OSA to the DMV? I doubt it.

OSA sufferers already are a lot closer to the Orwellian insurance situation described by several posters. My wife and I applied for long term care insurance with a new insurer after our present insurer bumped our premium 59%. There was a note in my medical file that I was scheduled for a PSG. Insurer #2 asked for a copy of the PSG, which showd an AHI of 12. The insurer declined to write a policy for me. Wife, yes; me no.

Here's the important part of this story. The insurance guy told me that I am uninsurable with respect to purchasing long term care insurance, life insurance and/or health insurance.

If OSA was reportable, the only thing that would change is that the govt. would figure out some clever new scheme to TAX it. It would not keep sleepy drivers off the road. It would not make the streets safer. People with OSA would be intimidated and not seek diagnosis or treatment. The apparent incidence and prevalence of OSA would drop off dramatically. The government (bless their pointy little heads) would take full credit for having "cured" this difficult medical problem, give themselves a raise and a bonus, and of course raise taxes (again).

Meanwhile, true sufferers of OSA will have gone underground, having formed a secret society, replete with a secret handshake, recognizable graffiti, and the telltale red marks across the bridge of the nose. DME's will have long since gone out of business, and will be forced back to their previous professions of selling shoes, cars, cellphones, large bridges, aluminum siding, etc. Actual real CPAP machines will be widely available without a prescription for about $10, being marketed as personal desktop vacuum cleaners, cubicle fans, dust blowers, etc. A few will find service as geek toys cooling CPUs, blowing bubbles at weddings, blowing cool air on the noses of wealthy poodles, and similar.

I might actually ponder making OSA reportable to the DMV on the condition that the DMV also include a sleep study as part of their driving test. That wouldn't be ALL bad. Oh, AND require at least a minimum IQ as prerequisite for obtaining a license, and maybe pass a critical thinking test. Oh, and one more thing: owning a cell phone should ALSO be reportable to the DMV, and for the same reason, it can lead to fatal accidents. While we're on the subject, I have observed that watching SNL, Leno, Letterman etc. can also be followed by delayed daytime drowsiness. Owning kids can have the same effect. Why should OSA sufferers be singled out for special bureaucratic regulation?

As tragic as the fatal accident was that triggered this questionnaire, it does not justify a whole new bureaucracy and system of reporting. The energy and funds would be better spent educating the public on the reality and the dangers of OSA. And even more importantly, taking measures to improve the therapy and compliance for those already diagnosed with OSA. That would begin with ensuring that patients get the equipment and training that best suits their needs, AND NOT JUST THE CHEAPEST CRUMMY EQUIPMENT THAT WILL GET THEM OUT THE DOOR, WHICH CHARACTERIZES THE BRICK AND MORTAR DME INDUSTRY TODAY.

But until all that happens, I vote to keep the @#$%^&* gubermunt out of our lives in every way possible. The government seems to have acquired a severe memory disorder, not being able to remember exactly why it exists. And I say that in the truest spirit of bipartisanship.

Cordially,

-Ric

WTG, Ric!!!

motherall wrote:I don't think we need to report but I do believe that doctors should be required to report this in the same way they are supposed to report seizure disorders. This is not something that will be picked up at license renewal. However, for those who are compliant, this might be a needless intrusion. I'm on the fence about this one. I know people who drive impaired from lack of sleep and have just been very lucky. And even for those of us compliant, we all know about those tossy-turny nights that leave us wiped out. This is why I'm not running for president....big decisions make my head hurt.

I haven't looked at the poll yet, but I just want to add to this. I have epilepsy and central sleep apnea. My neurologist, who treats me for the epilepsy, and who referred me to my sleep doctor for sleep apnea testing, has never reported me. In some places in Canada they are required to. He has agreed that as long as I am compliant with my meds, he won't report me. Once he asked me to abstain from driving while I changed meds. However, the sleep doctor, although acknowledging that I was compliant, did report me to our Ministry of Transportation. I got a "nice" letter telling me that it was ok to drive as long as I remain compliant. As this is fairly new to me, and my licence is not up for renewal just yet, I'm not sure if I'll be questioned then. I don't think so though from what I recall of the letter.

Same law the two doctors are working under, two different ways of handling it.

If my child had just been mowed down in broad daylight by a Hummer pulling a horse trailer right before my other child's eyes,
and if I found out the cause of the accident was because some rich slimeball convicted loan-shark wasn't taking the "medicine" prescribed for his condition (after all, he found it so uncomfortable--poor baby),
I would undoubtedly make it my life's mission to see to it a law was passed making it mandatory to report OSA to the DMV and insurance companies.

I can understand how someone touched by such a tragedy would think this was logical legislation: if an accident like this happened, the person would go to jail for vehicular homicide just like a drunk driver does. A drunk chooses to drink and drive; an OSA patient chooses not to use his machine and drive. It's a conscious decision of negligence and endangering others' lives.

But it wasn't my child. My life wasn't touched by such a tragedy. In fact, I'm a person with OSA and I use my cpap. I think mandatory reporting is a horrible idea for all the same reasons the rest of you have mentioned.

But I understand the knee-jerk reaction. I really do.

I didn't respond to the questionnaire because I don't want my IP captured. (step 1 with Big Bro).

Do you think the driver used his OSA as an 'excuse' for his behavior? Makes me wonder why one would volunteer that information.

I don't want to disclose how many years I went 'undiagnosed'!
It took the right doctor (one that 'listened', and had knowledge of what I was complaining.)

Except for those with Epilepsy in some states, I don't know of any other ailment/illness which requires 'registration' with any arm of our government.

The insurance companies already have their hands in it, and not necessarily in the RIGHT places!!! Their statistics are probably outdated anyway.

I was called to my family doctor's office about 3 weeks after being on CPAP. He asked if I was complying with my treatment. I said yes. He said good, otherwise he'd have to report me to Ontario Transport and they're remove my liscence. I asked if that was all he called me in for. He said yes. I told him then he wasted his and my time. I DON"T HAVE A DRIVERS LISCENSE!!!!!! sheezzzz...

Apparently in Ontario a doctor have have your driver's liscence revoked if you're not following treatment for OSA!

Lynne (In Ottawa)

lovely, got to love canada.

ldemmery wrote: ...He asked if I was complying with my treatment. I said yes.

Hmmmm so all we need to do is "Say YES!". And I'm so used to "Just saying No!".

I live in Ontario, Canada. When I was diagnosed, my sleep doctor was required, by law, to write to the Provincial Government to say that I have Sleep Apnea but, in his opinion, I am okay to drive.