MRB Members:
Gunnar Anderson, MD
Michael Greenberg, MD
Kurt Hegmann, MD
Barbara Phillips, MD
Matthew Rizzo, MD

FMCSA Staff:
Larry Minor, Director, Office of Bus and Truck Standards and Operations
Dr. Mary D. Gunnels, Chief, Physical Qualifications Division
Kaye Kirby, Team Leader, Medical Review Board

FMCSA Contractors:
John Sheridan, Manila Consulting Group
Laurie Conly, Manila Consulting Group
Latasha Casey, Manila Consulting Group
Sue Swanson, Manila Consulting Group

Summary

Larry Minor opened the meeting by welcoming the MRB members and explaining the importance of the MRB to FMCSA’s medical program. The goal of the MRB, he said, is to update the medical standards and guidelines and to make them evidence based. Board members introduced themselves and indicated their areas of expertise. FMCSA and MRB members discussed the mission and goals of the Board, the medical standards, and the decision framework for mapping out a work plan.

During their two-year terms, MRB members will review the medical standards and make recommendations for revising, updating, eliminating, or adding standards. The five members were selected because they have special expertise in medical standards currently under review.

FMCSA reported it has nine broad standards and four specific standards - for diabetes, epilepsy, hearing, and vision. The MRB charter, which was sent to members and will be posted on the public MRB Web site, describes the goals of the MRB and the roles and duties of MRB members.

To support the work on the medical standards, Medical Expert Panels are being formed to address specific issues. Once the panels have researched issues relevant to a medical standard and made recommendations, the MRB will review the recommendations and the evidence reports before developing its own recommendations for improving medical standards. FMCSA will share the methodology and techniques used to identify research information significant to medical standards with the MRB. The first two issues panels will address are 1) diabetes and 2) drugs (Schedule II).

MRB members will have an opportunity to make recommendations on current guidelines and procedures in an effort to improve the medical standards program, but will not be involved in rulemaking. FMCSA staff discussed the National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners (NRCME), and its role in the Agency's medical standards program. MRB members will help find ways to integrate information from the review of the medical standards into NRCME materials to improve training for medical examiners who perform CMV driver physical examinations. The first goal for the MRB is to develop a work plan at its initial meeting in Washington, DC, being held August 29-31, 2006. The next meeting is an operations teleconference that will take place on July 20, 2006.