It is mandated by federal guidelines that all commercial drivers pass the DOT health exam. The purpose of this test is to determine whether a potential driver is fit enough to drive safely now and in the foreseeable future.

Successfully passing the exam means you have 24 months before you need to do it again, unless you have some health problem which might become worse in the in the near term, in which case you’ll have to take the exam sooner.

Department of Transportation Requirements

Passing the DOT physical will require:

• With or without vision corrections, each eye, as well as both eyes combined, need to have 20/40 vision.
• Must be capable of distinguishing colors found on traffic signals.
• Hearing should be good enough to notice a forced whisper at a minimum distance of 5 feet.
• Maximum allowable blood pressure is 160/100. Use of prescription medication to achieve this threshold is permitted.
• Cannot have diabetes that requires insulin injections; diabetes controlled through a diet or oral medication is permitted.
• The maximum level of blood sugar an applicant is allowed to have is 200.
• Use of schedule 1 drugs is strictly disallowed.
• In case you are currently diagnosed with a cardiovascular disease such as congestive cardiac failure, collapse or cardiac insufficiency, then you will be required to provide the Medical Examiner with a stress test as well as with a note from your physician which states that you are able to drive a commercial motor vehicle without restrictions.

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