Medical Certificate/No Medical History

J

Jnew

Filing Flight Plan
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Jnew
Hello All,
I'm new to this forum, and this is my first post. I've searched the forum, but can't find the specific answer to my question, so hopefully someone with some experience can help me out.
I'm about to start flight training and need to get my first class medical done. I don't have a primary care doctor, or at least one I have seen in the last 7 or 8 years. I'm healthy and have no issues and I don't take any medications.
Is it going to be a issue that there is not real medical records for me? Do I have to provide something like then when I do the flight physical? Does the FAA do some sort of medical history search to find information since I can't provide anything? I guess I'm super naive to the process and want to make sure I go into it with everything I need so there are no delays. Any help would be appreciated.
 
Nope that won’t matter. Not having medical records is a good thing...:)

Your eligibility for a medical certificate is based upon the MedXpress form that you’ll fill out prior to your appointment with the AME.
 
As far as I know, medical records only come into play if you have a condition of some kind that you need special issuance for. Don't withhold anything you've been diagnosed with but if you haven't been diagnosed with anything then there's no issue.
 
Ryanb said:
Nope that won’t matter. Not having medical records is a good thing...:)

Your eligibility for a medical certificate is based upon the MedXpress form that you’ll fill out prior to your appointment with the AME.
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Great thanks, that makes sense. I didn't know if they frowned on not really having medical history. I thought it might be a red flag or something.
 
cowman said:
As far as I know, medical records only come into play if you have a condition of some kind that you need special issuance for. Don't withhold anything you've been diagnosed with but if you haven't been diagnosed with anything then there's no issue.
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Thanks for reply. That's good news. I've been fortunate and haven't had any issues. Any idea how far back they want information on? If I had a surgery when I was a child for hernia, is that something that needs to be disclosed, or do they want stuff disclosed that actually could matter?
 
Jnew said:
Thanks for reply. That's good news. I've been fortunate and haven't had any issues. Any idea how far back they want information on? If I had a surgery when I was a child for hernia, is that something that needs to be disclosed, or do they want stuff disclosed that actually could matter?
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The MedXpress form asks about any medical condition that you have had any time in your life. In addition, it asks about visits to health professionals in the last three years, and medications that you are currently taking.
 
They want EVERYTHING disclosed. If you are in doubt about anything or DO take medication or have had ADD/ADHD, anxiety, depression diagnosed or anything like that, post it here BEFORE you do MedXpress...plenty of people on here who can help you proceed before it’s too late. If nothing like that has ever been charted, you’ll be issued in the AME’s office, assuming your eyes and ears are good.
 
Jnew said:
Any idea how far back they want information on? If I had a surgery when I was a child for hernia, is that something that needs to be disclosed, or do they want stuff disclosed that actually could matter?
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Disclosing childhood surgery or illness is a good strategy, even though from a practical standpoint it's irrelevant to your ability to qualify for a medical. Someone in a booth in OKC will smile at the entry and feel assured that you read the instructions. :)
 
/sarcasm(begin)

“Have you ever in your life been admitted to a hospital?”

Well, there was the time way back when when I was born...
 
Make sure you keep a copy of each MedXPress form to reference for future certificate applications. You'll want to be sure answers remain consistent.
 
kjwalker01 said:
Make sure you keep a copy of each MedXPress form to reference for future certificate applications. You'll want to be sure answers remain consistent.
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Yes and no. If you’re referencing the answers you gave during the last application, are you answering the current form honestly?
 
Ryanb said:
Yes and no. If you’re referencing the answers you gave during the last application, are you answering the current form honestly?
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It's helpful to have the old answers as memory aids for things like, was that appendectomy when I was 8 or was I 11? Once you take a guess the first time, it's best to stick with it.
 
Jnew said:
Thanks for reply. That's good news. I've been fortunate and haven't had any issues. Any idea how far back they want information on? If I had a surgery when I was a child for hernia, is that something that needs to be disclosed, or do they want stuff disclosed that actually could matter?
Click to expand...

https://www.faa.gov/about/office_or...ces/aam/ame/guide/media/applicant history.pdf

I believe that's current and will answer most of your questions, pay special attention to question #18 on the form which is where most of the important "have you ever in your life" stuff is. The form also asks for, IIRC every medical visit you've had in the past 3 years. You need to disclose all of that stuff but they don't expect you to report stuff like going to the dr for a cold when you were 10.

I think that's where people new to this can get confused, you only need your complete history for the past 3 years and then there a bunch of specific "have you ever in your life" questions that need to be answered honestly if that makes sense. I have to answer yes on the question 18 boxes for asthma and allergies/hay fever even though I've not taken anything or had any asthma related issues in my adult life and my allergy/hay fever is pretty mild. I write that explanation on the form, submit it and it's a non-issue. I also had strep throat when I was a kid- not within the past 3 years and not a question they ask so I don't report it anywhere. God help me if I actually had to figure out every doctor visit I had in my lifetime, I've got no records of that especially from childhood. Since I did start getting FAA medicals I've started keeping a log of it though so I'll remember all the visits 5 years later when I get my next medical.

I know for those new to this it looks a bit intimidating. I was there on my first medical, you read about a lot of people on here who have very complicated issues to navigate like past DUIs or heart conditions and that kind of thing. For most of us who don't have anything exciting in our past it really is just fill the form out, see the doctor, pay money, get medical. Easy peasy.

I'm not 100% sure where or if the hernia needs to be reported, possibly under being admitted to a hospital or other for question #18? Someone else will have to answer that, I'm not a doctor nor am I an FAA medicals expert just someone who's done it couple of times and knows the basic process.
 
cowman said:
https://www.faa.gov/about/office_org/headquarters_offices/avs/offices/aam/ame/guide/media/applicant history.pdf

I believe that's current and will answer most of your questions, pay special attention to question #18 on the form which is where most of the important "have you ever in your life" stuff is. The form also asks for, IIRC every medical visit you've had in the past 3 years. You need to disclose all of that stuff but they don't expect you to report stuff like going to the dr for a cold when you were 10.

I think that's where people new to this can get confused, you only need your complete history for the past 3 years and then there a bunch of specific "have you ever in your life" questions that need to be answered honestly if that makes sense. I have to answer yes on the question 18 boxes for asthma and allergies/hay fever even though I've not taken anything or had any asthma related issues in my adult life and my allergy/hay fever is pretty mild. I write that explanation on the form, submit it and it's a non-issue. I also had strep throat when I was a kid- not within the past 3 years and not a question they ask so I don't report it anywhere. God help me if I actually had to figure out every doctor visit I had in my lifetime, I've got no records of that especially from childhood. Since I did start getting FAA medicals I've started keeping a log of it though so I'll remember all the visits 5 years later when I get my next medical.

I know for those new to this it looks a bit intimidating. I was there on my first medical, you read about a lot of people on here who have very complicated issues to navigate like past DUIs or heart conditions and that kind of thing. For most of us who don't have anything exciting in our past it really is just fill the form out, see the doctor, pay money, get medical. Easy peasy.

I'm not 100% sure where or if the hernia needs to be reported, possibly under being admitted to a hospital or other for question #18? Someone else will have to answer that, I'm not a doctor nor am I an FAA medicals expert just someone who's done it couple of times and knows the basic process.
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That all makes perfect sense. I've never had a DUI or drug arrest, so I'm good there. I have no major health issues, aside from getting a cold here and there. So I guess I'm pretty lucky and it'll be straight forward. I was just worried about stuff from when I was a kid I don't remember. I didn't know if they have some way of pulling medical records and finding something I forgot, but then I realized this isn't the movies and they don't have a huge database of everyone's medical record and visit to their doctor :) I read all these horror stories on forums and think the worse, like there will be a big gotcha, you forgot to disclose this, and boom no certificate.
 
dbahn said:
Disclosing childhood surgery or illness is a good strategy, even though from a practical standpoint it's irrelevant to your ability to qualify for a medical. Someone in a booth in OKC will smile at the entry and feel assured that you read the instructions. :)
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That would be nice if that were true. It's probably more like, "what a jacka$$ wasting out time with this" :)
 
Jnew said:
That all makes perfect sense. I've never had a DUI or drug arrest, so I'm good there. I have no major health issues, aside from getting a cold here and there. So I guess I'm pretty lucky and it'll be straight forward. I was just worried about stuff from when I was a kid I don't remember. I didn't know if they have some way of pulling medical records and finding something I forgot, but then I realized this isn't the movies and they don't have a huge database of everyone's medical record and visit to their doctor :) I read all these horror stories on forums and think the worse, like there will be a big gotcha, you forgot to disclose this, and boom no certificate.
Click to expand...

Yeah the FAA doesn't care about nor do they require you report every minor doctor visit you had when you were a kid. The horror stories come in when people quietly "forget" to mention a disqualifying condition that should have gotten a "yes" check on the question 18 stuff. That's why everyone keeps beating the "don't lie/omit" thing like a dead horse.

Also, yes they can check up on you. The FAA has access to health insurance databases(turns out HIPPA doesn't apply to the federal gov). They do have the ability to check those records but again the issue is those big "have you ever in your life" question 18 things not when you got the flu 10 years ago.
 
Hi guys,

Question related to this. Would surgery for a broken leg 8 years ago be an issue? Other than that I have not been to a doctor office in ages, nor do I have a primary care or take any medication. I believe im pretty healthy, eyes/ears should be fine and dandy
 
ivansie said:
Hi guys,

Question related to this. Would surgery for a broken leg 8 years ago be an issue? Other than that I have not been to a doctor office in ages, nor do I have a primary care or take any medication. I believe im pretty healthy, eyes/ears should be fine and dandy
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It won't be an issue, just report it on the MedXPress form.
 
ivansie said:
Hi guys,

Question related to this. Would surgery for a broken leg 8 years ago be an issue? Other than that I have not been to a doctor office in ages, nor do I have a primary care or take any medication. I believe im pretty healthy, eyes/ears should be fine and dandy
Click to expand...
See my reply to your long list of questions:D:D
 
My old AME would look at those kind of entries and say "You got better, right?" and move on.
 
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