[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 188 (Thursday, September 29, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 56964-56965]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-19460]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

[Docket No. FMCSA-2005-22417]


Notice of Intent To Survey Medical Examiners Who Certify the 
Physical Qualifications of Commercial Motor Vehicle Drivers

AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the requirement of Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of 
the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice announces the 
intention of FMCSA to request approval from the Office of Management 
and Budget (OMB) for an information collection associated with the 
agency's medical examiner Role Delineation Study. This information 
collection would gather data on the role of medical examiners and 
provide medical examiners (medical doctors (MDs), doctors of osteopathy 
(DOs), doctors of chiropractic (DCs), physician assistants (PAs) and 
advance practice nurses (APNs)) who perform FMCSA physical examinations 
of commercial motor vehicle (CMV) drivers a means of participating in 
an assessment of the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to 
effectively determine if a CMV driver's health meets Federal physical 
qualifications standards. The data obtained from the Role Delineation 
Study and other sources would be used to support the development of the 
National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners (NRCME) program.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before November 28, 2005.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by Docket Number FMCSA-
2005-22417 by any of the following methods:
     Web site: http://dms.dot.gov.
    Follow the instructions for submitting comments on the DOT 
electronic docket site.
     Fax: 1-202-493-2251.
     Mail: Docket Management System (DMS) Facility, U.S. 
Department of Transportation, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Nassif Building, 
Room PL-401, Washington, DC 20590-0001.
     Hand Delivery: Room PL-401 on plaza level of the Nassif 
Building, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 
p.m., Monday through Friday, except on Federal holidays.
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions for submitting 
comments.
    Instructions: All submissions must include the agency name and 
docket number of the notice. Note that all comments received will be 
posted without change to http://dms.dot.gov including any personal 
information provided.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or 
comments received, go to http://dms.dot.gov at any time or to Room PL-
401 on the plaza level of the Nassif Building, 400 Seventh Street, SW., 
Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, 
except Federal holidays.
    Privacy Act: Anyone is able to search the electronic form of all 
comments received into any of our dockets by the name of the individual 
submitting the comment (or signing the comment, if submitted on behalf 
of an association, business, labor union, etc.). You may review DOT's 
complete Privacy Act Statement in the Federal Register published on 
April 11, 2000, at 65 FR 19477 or you may visit http://dms.dot.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information, contact Dr. Mary D. 
Gunnels, Office of Bus and Truck Standards and Operations, Physical 
Qualifications Division, 202-366-4001. Office hours are from 8:30 a.m. 
to 5 p.m., Eastern time, Monday through Friday, except Federal 
holidays.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Title: Notice of Intent to Survey Medical Examiners Who Certify the 
Physical Qualifications of Commercial Motor Vehicle Drivers.

Background

    Section 4116 of The Safe, Accountable, Flexible, and Efficient 
Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU) (Public Law 
109-59) requires the Secretary of Transportation ``to establish and 
maintain a current national registry of medical examiners who are 
qualified to perform examinations and issue medical certificates.'' To 
implement this requirement, FMCSA is developing the National Registry 
program that was announced at a June 22, 2005, Public Meeting in 
Arlington, Virginia (70 FR 28596; May 18, 2005). The NRCME will be 
comprised, in part, of a training and testing program that will include 
a database of medical examiners who conduct medical examinations of 
interstate CMV drivers and effectively determine their physical 
qualifications to operate such vehicles in interstate commerce as 
defined in 49 CFR 391.41.
    Once the program is implemented, FMCSA would only accept medical 
examinations conducted by NRCME medical examiners. The NRCME program 
would require training using a standardized curriculum, a certification 
examination, and procedures to maintain the quality of the program in 
accordance with national accreditation standards. The Role Delineation 
Study is a critical component of developing a standardized training 
curriculum and a valid, reliable and fair certification examination. 
The goal of the Role Delineation Study is to inform the policies that 
guide the NRCME program in accordance with national accreditation 
standards. The study is an assessment of the knowledge, skills, and 
abilities necessary for a medical examiner to perform competently. The 
Role Delineation Study incorporates the following components: (1) 
Develop a task list through a variety of techniques; (2) measure 
agreement on each task in the list by a representative sample of 
medical examiners; (3) disqualify tasks lacking sufficient agreement; 
(4) identify critical tasks; and (5) create specifications for an 
examination. The information derived from the Role Delineation Study is 
necessary to form the basis of a professionally and legally sound 
quality management system that supports a national accreditation of the 
certification program. A survey of medical examiners is one of the 
techniques for gathering data from FMCSA medical examiners for the Role 
Delineation Study.
    Respondents: Medical examiners (MDs, DOs, DCs, PAs, and APNs) who 
are currently performing FMCSA physical examinations of CMV drivers.
    Estimated Average Burden per Response: The estimated average burden 
per response for each survey is 30 to 60 minutes.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden: The estimated total annual burden is 
500 to 1000 hours for the information collection based on the following 
requirement for statistical significance: 200 responses for each of the 
five medical examiner professional categories; [1000 respondents per 
survey

[[Page 56965]]

x 30/60 minutes per respondent = 500 to 1000 hours].
    Frequency: Data collection in support of program content validation 
is typically done every few years because practice standards change and 
evolve.

Public Comments Invited

    Interested parties are invited to send comments regarding any 
aspect of this information collection, including but not limited to: 
(1) The necessity and utility of the information collection for the 
proper performance of the functions of FMCSA and specifically the 
conduct of the Role Delineation Study; (2) the accuracy of the 
estimated burden; (3) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity 
of the collected information; and (4) ways to minimize the collection 
burden without reducing the quality of the collected information. 
Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized and/or 
included in the request for OMB's clearance for this information 
collection.

    Issued on: September 22, 2005.
Rose A. McMurray,
Associate Administrator for Policy and Program Development.
[FR Doc. 05-19460 Filed 9-28-05; 8:45 am]
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