Evaluation of Safety Sensitive Personnel for Moderate-to-Severe Obstructive Sleep Apnea, 37038-37039 [2017-16451]
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Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 151 / Tuesday, August 8, 2017 / Proposed Rules
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
RIN 2126–AB88 and 2130–AC52
Andres Febres of the Air Regulatory
Management Section, Air Planning and
Implementation Branch, Air, Pesticides
and Toxics Management Division, U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency,
Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street SW.,
Atlanta, Georgia 30303–8960. Mr.
Febres can be reached via telephone at
(404) 562–8966 or via electronic mail at
febres-martinez.andres@epa.gov.
In the
Final Rules Section of this Federal
Register, EPA is approving Mississippi’s
June 7, 2016 SIP revision that modifies
the State’s PSD program by changing the
IBR date for the Federal PSD regulations
to February 17, 2016, as a direct final
rule without prior proposal because the
Agency views this as a noncontroversial
submittal and anticipates no adverse
comments. A detailed rationale for the
approval is set forth in the direct final
rule and incorporated herein by
reference. If no adverse comments are
received in response to this rule, no
further activity is contemplated. If EPA
receives adverse comments, the direct
final rule will be withdrawn and all
adverse comments received will be
addressed in a subsequent final rule
based on this proposed rule. EPA will
not institute a second comment period
on this document. Any parties
interested in commenting on this
document should do so at this time.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Dated: July 25, 2017.
V. Anne Heard,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 4.
[FR Doc. 2017–16615 Filed 8–7–17; 8:45 am]
asabaliauskas on DSKBBXCHB2PROD with PROPOSALS
BILLING CODE 6560–50–P
Federal Motor Carrier Safety
Administration
49 CFR Part 391
Federal Railroad Administration
49 CFR Parts 240 and 242
[Docket Numbers FMCSA–2015–0419 and
FRA–2015–0111]
Evaluation of Safety Sensitive
Personnel for Moderate-to-Severe
Obstructive Sleep Apnea
Advance notice of proposed
rulemaking; withdrawal.
ACTION:
The Federal Motor Carrier
Safety Administration (FMCSA) and
Federal Railroad Administration (FRA)
(collectively, the Agencies) withdraw
the March 10, 2016, advance notice of
proposed rulemaking (ANPRM)
concerning the prevalence of moderateto-severe obstructive sleep apnea (OSA)
among individuals occupying safety
sensitive positions in highway and rail
transportation, and its potential
consequences for the safety of highway
and rail transportation. The Agencies
have determined not to issue a notice of
proposed rulemaking at this time.
DATES: As of August 8, 2017 the ANPRM
published on March 10, 2016, at 81 FR
12642 is withdrawn.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
FMCSA: Ms. Christine Hydock, Chief
of the Medical Programs Division,
FMCSA, 1200 New Jersey Ave. SE.,
Washington, DC 20590–0001, by
telephone at 202–366–4001, or by email
at fmcsamedical@dot.gov.
FRA: Dr. Amanda Emo, Fatigue
Program Manager, Risk Reduction
Program Division, Office of Safety
Analysis, FRA, 1200 New Jersey Avenue
SE., Washington, DC 20590–0001, by
telephone at 202–281–0695, or by email
at amanda.emo@dot.gov.
If you have questions about viewing
or submitting material to the docket,
contact Docket Services, telephone 202–
493–0402.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
SUMMARY:
Background
Based on the potential severity of
OSA-related transportation incidents
and crashes/accidents, and the varied,
non-regulatory, OSA-related actions the
Department’s Operating
Administrations have taken to date, the
Agencies issued a joint ANPRM to
consider regulatory action to ensure
VerDate Sep<11>2014
18:18 Aug 07, 2017
Jkt 241001
PO 00000
Frm 00008
Fmt 4702
Sfmt 4702
consistency in addressing the risk of
OSA among transportation workers with
safety sensitive duties (81 FR 12642,
March 10, 2016). The Agencies sought
information from interested parties
regarding OSA to better inform their
decision on whether to take regulatory
action and, if so, how to craft the most
effective and efficient regulations to
address the potential safety risks
associated with untreated OSA.
The information requested in the
ANPRM seemed to be necessary to help
the Agencies quantify the potential
economic benefits and costs of adopting
standards to assess risks associated with
motor carrier and rail transportation
workers in safety sensitive positions
diagnosed with OSA. To gather relevant
data, the Agencies posed a series of
questions addressing the following
matters:
• Whether OSA is a problem among
individuals occupying safety sensitive
positions in highway and rail
transportation;
• Cost and benefits of regulatory
actions that address the safety risks
associated with motor carrier and rail
transportation workers in safety
sensitive positions who have OSA;
• Qualifications and restrictions for
medical personnel; and
• Treatment effectiveness.
The Agencies also sought information
at three listening sessions in May 2016,
and extended the comment period by
thirty days to review the results from
the American Transportation Research
Institute (ATRI) Commercial Driver
Survey on Sleep Apnea Issues (https://
atri-online.org/2016/04/14/atri-launches
-commercial-driver-survey-on-sleepapnea-issues/). The Agencies received
more than 700 comments from
individuals, medical professionals,
labor groups, and transportation
industry stakeholders. The Agencies
also received comments from the
National Transportation Safety Board
and three members of Congress, the
Honorable Anna Eshoo, the Honorable
Sam Farr, and the Honorable Michael
M. Honda.
The Agencies’ Decision
OSA remains an on-going concern for
the Agencies and the motor carrier and
railroad industries because it can cause
unintended sleep episodes and resulting
deficits in attention, concentration,
situational awareness, and memory,
thus reducing the capacity to safely
respond to hazards when performing
safety sensitive duties. The Agencies
received valuable information in
response to the ANPRM and a series of
public listening sessions in May 2016.
The Agencies believe that current safety
E:\FR\FM\08AUP1.SGM
08AUP1
Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 151 / Tuesday, August 8, 2017 / Proposed Rules
programs and FRA’s rulemaking
addressing fatigue risk management are
the appropriate avenues to address
OSA.
FMCSA will consider an update to its
January 2015 ‘‘Bulletin to Medical
Examiners and Training Organizations
Regarding Obstructive Sleep Apnea’’
regarding the physical qualifications
standard and related advisory criteria
concerning respiratory dysfunction,
specifically how the standard applies to
drivers who may have OSA. The Agency
would use the updated August 2016
Medical Review Board 1
recommendations as a basis for
updating the bulletin. On August 22–23,
2016, the MRB met in public meetings
to deliberate on Medical Review Board
Task 16–1 regarding public comments
from medical professionals and
associations on the FMCSA’s and FRA’s
ANPRM on obstructive sleep apnea.
FMCSA tasked the MRB with reviewing
and analyzing all ANPRM comments
from medical professionals and
associations and to identify factors the
Agency should consider regarding
making decisions about the next step in
the OSA rulemaking. FMCSA also
requested that the MRB review its
previous February 2012 report on OSA
from the MRB and Motor Carrier Safety
Advisory Committee (MCSAC). The
MRB’s February 2012 recommendations
formed the basis of their August 2016
recommendations. In scenarios where
medical examiners may inappropriately
screen and refer drivers for diagnostic
testing based on single criteria, the
MRB’s 2016 recommendations provide
objective criteria for identifying drivers
who may be at greater risk for OSA.
And, as was the case with the 2015
bulletin, the purpose of any action
updating the bulletin is to ensure that
medical examiners fully understand
their role in screening drivers for OSA,
identifying drivers at the greatest risk of
asabaliauskas on DSKBBXCHB2PROD with PROPOSALS
1 https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/advisory-committees
/mcsac/mrb-task-16-01-letter-report. A copy of the
MRB recommendations is included in this
rulemaking docket.
VerDate Sep<11>2014
18:18 Aug 07, 2017
Jkt 241001
having OSA, and refer only those
individuals to a sleep specialist for
testing. The Agency reminds medical
examiners that there are no FMCSA
rules or other regulatory guidance
beyond what is referenced in this
paragraph above with guidelines for
screening, diagnosis, and treatment of
OSA in CMV drivers. Medical
certification determinations for such
drivers are made by the examiners based
on the examiner’s medical judgment
rather than a Federal regulation or
requirement.
In addition, FMCSA will continue to
recommend that drivers and their
employers use the North American
Fatigue Management Program (NAFMP)
(https://www.nafmp.org/
index.php?lang=en). The NAFMP is a
voluntary, fully interactive web-based
educational and training program
developed to provide both truck and bus
commercial vehicle drivers and carriers
and others in the supply chain with an
awareness of the factors contributing to
fatigue and its impact on performance.
Guidance on health and wellness, time
management, vehicle technologies and
scheduling best-practices provide
effective mitigation strategies to address
fatigue while maintaining a healthy and
productive work/life balance. Module 8
of the program, Driver Sleep Disorders
Management, includes an extensive
discussion of OSA. [The training
materials may be downloaded at https://
www.nafmp.org/
index.php?option=com_content&
view=article&id=14:downloads&catid
=26&lang=en&Itemid=115.]
On September 21, 2004, FRA issued
Safety Advisory 2004–04 to alert the
railroad industry, and especially those
employees with safety sensitive duties,
to the danger associated with
degradation of performance resulting
from undiagnosed or unsuccessfully
treated sleep disorders (69 FR 58995,
Oct. 1, 2004). That Safety Advisory set
forth recommended actions regarding
OSA, which FRA reiterated in Safety
Advisory 2016–03 (81 FR 87649, Dec. 5,
2016). Additionally, FRA is aware
PO 00000
Frm 00009
Fmt 4702
Sfmt 9990
37039
several railroads are implementing OSA
identification and treatment programs.
FRA anticipates these programs will
identify best practices for OSA
screening, diagnosis, treatment, and
mitigation. These programs will help
identify the current and future needs of
the industry, potential costs, and help
define FRA’s role in addressing OSA in
the railroad industry. In addition, under
the Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008
(RSIA), railroads must establish a
fatigue management plan as part of their
Risk Reduction Program (RRP) or
System Safety Program (SSP) (49 U.S.C.
20156(f)). RSIA requires a railroad to
consider the need to include in its
fatigue management plan ‘‘opportunities
for identification, diagnosis, and
treatment of any medical condition that
may affect alertness or fatigue, including
sleep disorders.’’ (Id. at section
20156(f)(3)(B).) While RSIA does not
address OSA by name, FRA believes
railroads will consider OSA when
addressing medical conditions that
affect alertness under a railroad’s fatigue
risk management plan as part of an RRP
or SSP. FRA will continue to monitor
railroads’ voluntary OSA programs, as
well as the implementation of fatigue
risk management plans, as part of an
RRP or SSP.
Based on the foregoing reasons, the
Agencies withdraw the March 2016
ANPRM entitled ‘‘Evaluation of Safety
Sensitive Personnel for Moderate-toSevere Obstructive Sleep Apnea.’’ If
FRA or FMCSA determines further
action to be necessary, it will consider
regulatory action.
Issued under the authority of delegations
in 49 CFR 1.87(f) and (i) and 49 CFR 1.89(a),
respectively: July 31, 2017.
Daphne Y. Jefferson,
Deputy Administrator, Federal Motor Carrier
Safety Administration.
Heath Hall,
Acting Administrator, Federal Railroad
Administration.
[FR Doc. 2017–16451 Filed 8–4–17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910–EX–P
E:\FR\FM\08AUP1.SGM
08AUP1
Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 151 (Tuesday, August 8, 2017)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 37038-37039]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-16451]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
49 CFR Part 391
Federal Railroad Administration
49 CFR Parts 240 and 242
[Docket Numbers FMCSA-2015-0419 and FRA-2015-0111]
RIN 2126-AB88 and 2130-AC52
Evaluation of Safety Sensitive Personnel for Moderate-to-Severe
Obstructive Sleep Apnea
ACTION: Advance notice of proposed rulemaking; withdrawal.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and
Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) (collectively, the Agencies)
withdraw the March 10, 2016, advance notice of proposed rulemaking
(ANPRM) concerning the prevalence of moderate-to-severe obstructive
sleep apnea (OSA) among individuals occupying safety sensitive
positions in highway and rail transportation, and its potential
consequences for the safety of highway and rail transportation. The
Agencies have determined not to issue a notice of proposed rulemaking
at this time.
DATES: As of August 8, 2017 the ANPRM published on March 10, 2016, at
81 FR 12642 is withdrawn.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
FMCSA: Ms. Christine Hydock, Chief of the Medical Programs
Division, FMCSA, 1200 New Jersey Ave. SE., Washington, DC 20590-0001,
by telephone at 202-366-4001, or by email at fmcsamedical@dot.gov.
FRA: Dr. Amanda Emo, Fatigue Program Manager, Risk Reduction
Program Division, Office of Safety Analysis, FRA, 1200 New Jersey
Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590-0001, by telephone at 202-281-0695, or
by email at amanda.emo@dot.gov.
If you have questions about viewing or submitting material to the
docket, contact Docket Services, telephone 202-493-0402.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Based on the potential severity of OSA-related transportation
incidents and crashes/accidents, and the varied, non-regulatory, OSA-
related actions the Department's Operating Administrations have taken
to date, the Agencies issued a joint ANPRM to consider regulatory
action to ensure consistency in addressing the risk of OSA among
transportation workers with safety sensitive duties (81 FR 12642, March
10, 2016). The Agencies sought information from interested parties
regarding OSA to better inform their decision on whether to take
regulatory action and, if so, how to craft the most effective and
efficient regulations to address the potential safety risks associated
with untreated OSA.
The information requested in the ANPRM seemed to be necessary to
help the Agencies quantify the potential economic benefits and costs of
adopting standards to assess risks associated with motor carrier and
rail transportation workers in safety sensitive positions diagnosed
with OSA. To gather relevant data, the Agencies posed a series of
questions addressing the following matters:
Whether OSA is a problem among individuals occupying
safety sensitive positions in highway and rail transportation;
Cost and benefits of regulatory actions that address the
safety risks associated with motor carrier and rail transportation
workers in safety sensitive positions who have OSA;
Qualifications and restrictions for medical personnel; and
Treatment effectiveness.
The Agencies also sought information at three listening sessions in
May 2016, and extended the comment period by thirty days to review the
results from the American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI)
Commercial Driver Survey on Sleep Apnea Issues (https://atri-online.org/2016/04/14/atri-launches-commercial-driver-survey-on-sleep-apnea-issues/). The Agencies received more than 700 comments from
individuals, medical professionals, labor groups, and transportation
industry stakeholders. The Agencies also received comments from the
National Transportation Safety Board and three members of Congress, the
Honorable Anna Eshoo, the Honorable Sam Farr, and the Honorable Michael
M. Honda.
The Agencies' Decision
OSA remains an on-going concern for the Agencies and the motor
carrier and railroad industries because it can cause unintended sleep
episodes and resulting deficits in attention, concentration,
situational awareness, and memory, thus reducing the capacity to safely
respond to hazards when performing safety sensitive duties. The
Agencies received valuable information in response to the ANPRM and a
series of public listening sessions in May 2016. The Agencies believe
that current safety
[[Page 37039]]
programs and FRA's rulemaking addressing fatigue risk management are
the appropriate avenues to address OSA.
FMCSA will consider an update to its January 2015 ``Bulletin to
Medical Examiners and Training Organizations Regarding Obstructive
Sleep Apnea'' regarding the physical qualifications standard and
related advisory criteria concerning respiratory dysfunction,
specifically how the standard applies to drivers who may have OSA. The
Agency would use the updated August 2016 Medical Review Board \1\
recommendations as a basis for updating the bulletin. On August 22-23,
2016, the MRB met in public meetings to deliberate on Medical Review
Board Task 16-1 regarding public comments from medical professionals
and associations on the FMCSA's and FRA's ANPRM on obstructive sleep
apnea. FMCSA tasked the MRB with reviewing and analyzing all ANPRM
comments from medical professionals and associations and to identify
factors the Agency should consider regarding making decisions about the
next step in the OSA rulemaking. FMCSA also requested that the MRB
review its previous February 2012 report on OSA from the MRB and Motor
Carrier Safety Advisory Committee (MCSAC). The MRB's February 2012
recommendations formed the basis of their August 2016 recommendations.
In scenarios where medical examiners may inappropriately screen and
refer drivers for diagnostic testing based on single criteria, the
MRB's 2016 recommendations provide objective criteria for identifying
drivers who may be at greater risk for OSA. And, as was the case with
the 2015 bulletin, the purpose of any action updating the bulletin is
to ensure that medical examiners fully understand their role in
screening drivers for OSA, identifying drivers at the greatest risk of
having OSA, and refer only those individuals to a sleep specialist for
testing. The Agency reminds medical examiners that there are no FMCSA
rules or other regulatory guidance beyond what is referenced in this
paragraph above with guidelines for screening, diagnosis, and treatment
of OSA in CMV drivers. Medical certification determinations for such
drivers are made by the examiners based on the examiner's medical
judgment rather than a Federal regulation or requirement.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/advisory-committees/mcsac/mrb-task-16-01-letter-report. A copy of the MRB recommendations is
included in this rulemaking docket.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
In addition, FMCSA will continue to recommend that drivers and
their employers use the North American Fatigue Management Program
(NAFMP) (https://www.nafmp.org/index.php?lang=en). The NAFMP is a
voluntary, fully interactive web-based educational and training program
developed to provide both truck and bus commercial vehicle drivers and
carriers and others in the supply chain with an awareness of the
factors contributing to fatigue and its impact on performance. Guidance
on health and wellness, time management, vehicle technologies and
scheduling best-practices provide effective mitigation strategies to
address fatigue while maintaining a healthy and productive work/life
balance. Module 8 of the program, Driver Sleep Disorders Management,
includes an extensive discussion of OSA. [The training materials may be
downloaded at https://www.nafmp.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=14:downloads&catid=26&lang=en&Itemid=115.]
On September 21, 2004, FRA issued Safety Advisory 2004-04 to alert
the railroad industry, and especially those employees with safety
sensitive duties, to the danger associated with degradation of
performance resulting from undiagnosed or unsuccessfully treated sleep
disorders (69 FR 58995, Oct. 1, 2004). That Safety Advisory set forth
recommended actions regarding OSA, which FRA reiterated in Safety
Advisory 2016-03 (81 FR 87649, Dec. 5, 2016). Additionally, FRA is
aware several railroads are implementing OSA identification and
treatment programs. FRA anticipates these programs will identify best
practices for OSA screening, diagnosis, treatment, and mitigation.
These programs will help identify the current and future needs of the
industry, potential costs, and help define FRA's role in addressing OSA
in the railroad industry. In addition, under the Rail Safety
Improvement Act of 2008 (RSIA), railroads must establish a fatigue
management plan as part of their Risk Reduction Program (RRP) or System
Safety Program (SSP) (49 U.S.C. 20156(f)). RSIA requires a railroad to
consider the need to include in its fatigue management plan
``opportunities for identification, diagnosis, and treatment of any
medical condition that may affect alertness or fatigue, including sleep
disorders.'' (Id. at section 20156(f)(3)(B).) While RSIA does not
address OSA by name, FRA believes railroads will consider OSA when
addressing medical conditions that affect alertness under a railroad's
fatigue risk management plan as part of an RRP or SSP. FRA will
continue to monitor railroads' voluntary OSA programs, as well as the
implementation of fatigue risk management plans, as part of an RRP or
SSP.
Based on the foregoing reasons, the Agencies withdraw the March
2016 ANPRM entitled ``Evaluation of Safety Sensitive Personnel for
Moderate-to-Severe Obstructive Sleep Apnea.'' If FRA or FMCSA
determines further action to be necessary, it will consider regulatory
action.
Issued under the authority of delegations in 49 CFR 1.87(f) and
(i) and 49 CFR 1.89(a), respectively: July 31, 2017.
Daphne Y. Jefferson,
Deputy Administrator, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.
Heath Hall,
Acting Administrator, Federal Railroad Administration.
[FR Doc. 2017-16451 Filed 8-4-17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-EX-P