HIMS to BasicMed Scenario

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Suppose your HIMS SI medical certificate expires 2 weeks before your next 3 month follow up (your exam was done on a appointment that was not in line with your regular 3 month follow ups). Upon expiration, you don't apply for a new medical certificate and you cancel your next HIMS follow up appointment. Basically a "walk away".

Is there anything the HIMS AME can do or say to the FAA that would cause your SI Authorization to be withdrawn at this point, thereby invalidating your BasicMed? Can the HIMS AME simply up and drop you for choosing not to renew your SI medical certificate?
 
Yep. .. you just have to comply and let it expire at the end. (usually after the year). However, do be aware - if you are planning on owning a plane in the future - as you move up the capability of the plane - many insurance companies are requiring class 1,2, or 3 medicals and not writing if you only carry BM. This is especially true in the complex/high performance space. Its essentially mandatory at the pressurized level as well.
 
A watch out. I've read posts from others who have had "helpful AMEs and Doctors" that have own their own submitted paperwork on the patient's behalf without being requested by anyone. The FAA will consider this a re application by you the pilot, and denial /HIMS / SI all over again. Which would make you ineligible for Basic Med.

If this is your path, please double check with the AME that they are NOT to submit any paperwork of any kind on your behalf.
 
That may work for many HIMS issuances. But, I have several with 3rd monthly reports to be sent in.

If the AME doesn’t get the monthly reports he has to take the airman down. The key is just no further exams…these are all 6 month certificates….full information up to the last day.
 
Anthem said:
Yep. .. you just have to comply and let it expire at the end. (usually after the year). However, do be aware - if you are planning on owning a plane in the future - as you move up the capability of the plane - many insurance companies are requiring class 1,2, or 3 medicals and not writing if you only carry BM. This is especially true in the complex/high performance space. Its essentially mandatory at the pressurized level as well.
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Which companies require that? I’ve heard anecdotes online, but no broker has ever taken the bait to say, “That’s right; PDQ requires a Class III. . . “

bbchien said:
That may work for many HIMS issuances. But, I have several with 3rd monthly reports to be sent in.

If the AME doesn’t get the monthly reports he has to take the airman down. The key is just no further exams…these are all 6 month certificates….full information up to the last day.
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If his Medical expires before the next report is due, isn’t he compliant until the last day? If not, it seems he’s stuck in HIMS forever, and BasicMed is of no benefit.

Or are you saying he needs a report sent during the third month rather than after three months, in which case he just needs to do it one more time? That might be the case if the reports are backward-looking evaluations rather than a Class III’s “this is how it looks today.”
 
I seem to recall this from our resident FAA guy, Brad Z:

Brad Z said:
There is an off-ramp when the certificate issued expires. Otherwise you'd never be able to transition to BasicMed, which was not Congress's intention. Whether that's a good idea for certain mental health conditions is a different question. 61.53 always applies. FAA's clarification:

https://www.faa.gov/sites/faa.gov/f...Domingo-AFX-1-2_2018_Legal_Interpretation.pdf
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Brad Z said:
Sorry, a little late to the party.

As noted in the Domingo Interp, the ability of the FAA medical to withdraw a Special Issuance ceases when the medical certificate expires. Otherwise, conceivably, they could issue 20 year SI letters and never allow anyone with an SI to get out of the hamster wheel without getting their SI authorization withdrawn and subsequently disqualified for BasicMed and Sport pilot privileges.

Note that the Domingo letter makes no distinction for the type of SI. So yes, a medical issued with HIMS requirements can be transitioned to BasicMed once the initial medical certificate expires.
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OneCharlieTango said:
Which companies require that? I’ve heard anecdotes online, but no broker has ever taken the bait to say, “That’s right; PDQ requires a Class III. . . “
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I specifically asked my broker. He said my policy for my twin requires a medical certificate meaning Basic Med is not adequate. He also said that he doubted the insurance would refuse to pay on a claim even if I was flying on BM unless the claim could be traced back to something related to BM vs Med Cert. But he also said that if I really wanted to fly the twin on BM that he would contact the insurance company and see if the policy could be written so as to allow BM.

I told him it was only a thought exercise and I was not looking to change anything. At the moment. Who knows what the future holds.
 
Mongoose Aviator said:
I specifically asked my broker. He said my policy for my twin requires a medical certificate meaning Basic Med is not adequate. He also said that he doubted the insurance would refuse to pay on a claim even if I was flying on BM unless the claim could be traced back to something related to BM vs Med Cert. But he also said that if I really wanted to fly the twin on BM that he would contact the insurance company and see if the policy could be written so as to allow BM.

I told him it was only a thought exercise and I was not looking to change anything. At the moment. Who knows what the future holds.
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But how do they define "medical certificate"? Some insurance companies recognize BM as fulfilling the requirement of a "medical certificate". It's important to know exactly how your insurance provider defines the term "medical certificate".

BasicMed and How it Relates to Your Aviation Insurance

After decades of working on alternative medical legislation, the aviation alphabet groups were finally able to convince the FAA to reform the third-class medical system. On July 15, 2016, Congress pa
www.assuredpartners.com
 
Mongoose Aviator said:
I am not sure what part of this you find ambiguous.


Whatever.
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Did you even read the article I attached?

Some insurance companies recognize BM as fulfilling the requirement of a "medical certificate". It's important to know exactly how your insurance provider defines the term "medical certificate".
 
I’ve looked at policies that say “medical certificate if required by the FAA” or words to that effect.

What you said in #9 is a lot different from what Anthem said in #4. One company that might or might not have required you personally to have a Class 3 in a twin is a long way from “lots of companies” routinely requiring Class 1, 2, or 3 medical for “complex or high performance.”
 
The AME doesn’t have to send a thing…but if a required 90 day report is missed and not sent. the whole thing ends in denial.
 
OneCharlieTango said:
I’ve looked at policies that say “medical certificate if required by the FAA” or words to that effect.

What you said in #9 is a lot different from what Anthem said in #4. One company that might or might not have required you personally to have a Class 3 in a twin is a long way from “lots of companies” routinely requiring Class 1, 2, or 3 medical for “complex or high performance.”
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My policy states that I have to be in compliance with FAR 61.23.
 
OneCharlieTango said:
I’ve looked at policies that say “medical certificate if required by the FAA” or words to that effect.

What you said in #9 is a lot different from what Anthem said in #4. One company that might or might not have required you personally to have a Class 3 in a twin is a long way from “lots of companies” routinely requiring Class 1, 2, or 3 medical for “complex or high performance.”
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Look - if the insurance company requires a class I, II, III certificate - generally they will require it and not "overlook" just BM. They can easily check, and many insurance companies do a 2 or 3 month followup to make sure you are in compliance. I know London does this. And I know London will issue a immediate cancel on your policy if you are not in compliance with that requirement when they issued the policy. If you want to take that chance - go right ahead.

There are some on here that argue that BM is the same as a Class III. It isnt. Not in the FAA's eyes, and not in the eyes of insurance companies that are writing the policies. And Im willing to bet, not in international countries (outside of the the current 2 that do take BM).

They havent all gone that way, but they are heading in that direction. In the high performance/complex - they are also requiring an instrument ticket for many as well. So what I wrote was that if you plan on moving in to that space - basic med may not be good enough for insurance companies. There might be some that will write, but then you might also be limiting yourself as to what insurance company options you have available. And this is happening more and more for complex/High performance aircraft. Not Complex OR high performance - but complex AND high performance. I imagine your barely 201hp airplane that barely exceeds the HP category isnt going to be a problem. But you get a piper meridian, P210, twin engine cessnas - especially pressurized - its definitely happening more and more.
 
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bbchien said:
If the AME doesn’t get the monthly reports he has to take the airman down.
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Geez you make it sound as if the airman has committed some sort of a heinous crime.

I seem to recall this from Brad Z:
Brad Z said:
As noted in the Domingo Interp, the ability of the FAA medical to withdraw a Special Issuance ceases when the medical certificate expires. Otherwise, conceivably, they could issue 20 year SI letters and never allow anyone with an SI to get out of the hamster wheel without getting their SI authorization withdrawn and subsequently disqualified for BasicMed and Sport pilot privileges.

Note that the Domingo letter makes no distinction for the type of SI. So yes, a medical issued with HIMS requirements can be transitioned to BasicMed once the initial medical certificate expires.
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Your statement there says it all. Once it expires. But it’s validity is for however long the si states and if you don’t comply with the terms it gets revoked before it actually expires. You have to comply throughout until it actually does for certain si’s that have these terms. So it follows exactly as you indicated but if you fail to follow the terms before it expires and it gets revoked - your basic med is now no longer possible
 
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