NEW PROPOSAL WOULD IDENTIFY DRIVERS WHO BLACK OUT AND CAUSE CRASHES BY SECRETARY OF STATE GEORGE H. RYAN

Last December, a 31-year-old Palatine driver crashed into a post office building during a seizure and injured more than a dozen people. The man also had four previous collisions involving seizures, but none of the incidents were reported to the Secretary of State's office.

If our office is not notified of situations like this, we cannot take the appropriate action to get the driver off the road. Therefore, I have proposed legislation in the General Assembly that would require police officers to report these drivers to the Secretary of State's office, either in writing or electronically, and we could cancel their licenses immediately.

The legislation — House Bill 3629 —passed the House Constitutional Officers Committee recently on a unanimous vote and is being considered by the full House.

Many police officers are not aware of the procedures to follow if they discover that an accident or other traffic incident was caused by a loss of consciousness. HB 3629 requires the Secretary of State's office to consult with the Illinois State Police and local law enforcement agencies to develop any necessary rules and reporting procedures.

This proposal also requires motorists to notify our office within 10 days after becoming aware of any medical condition that could impair their driving abilities.

The only medical screening process currently in place occurs at the time a driver applies for a new or renewed license. All applicants are asked whether they have a medical condition that may cause loss of consciousness or impact their ability to operate a vehicle safely. Yet, a driver is not required to report a condition that arises after receiving a driver's license.

Physicians, states' attorneys, police officers and members of the judiciary also can voluntarily report medically at-risk drivers to our office. When a report is received, the motorist is required to produce a physician's statement saying he or she is safe to drive.

In borderline cases, the statement is referred to the licensed physicians on the Secretary of State's Medical Review Board. The review board can require an updated statement at all subsequent renewals or on a more frequent basis.

Depending on the board's recommendation and the circumstances surrounding the loss of consciousness, a driver either will be allowed to reapply for a license or be required to remain seizure-free for a designated period (usually six months) before reapplying for a license.

Generally, once a driver has been reinstated, follow-up medical statements are required at six-month intervals. If the driver is reported by an authorized individual a second time, the review board usually requires him or her to submit a follow-up statement every three months if he or she is approved for driving. A third report usually results in reinstatement being denied indefinitely.

Requiring that individuals and police officers report medical conditions to our office would help us identify more high-risk drivers. But more importantly, it would give us the opportunity to take steps that could save lives.

If this bill becomes law, the driver-reporting provisions would become effective immediately, while the law enforcement provisions would be effective July 1, 1997.

Sponsors of the legislation are state Reps. Dan Rutherford, R-Pontiac, and James B. Durkin, R-Westchester. •

Page 16 / Illinois Municipal Review / April 1996