Your handicapped placard application could cost you your license. In many cases, HP applications result in the Registry’s Medical Affairs Bureau issuing license surrender letters and eventually indefinite immediate threat medical suspensions.
When you apply for a handicapped placard in Massachusetts, the Registry of Motor Vehicles will ask your physician if your medical condition would prevent you from safely operating a motor vehicle. The Registry will also ask your doctor if you are medically qualified to drive safely and whether you should be given a competency road test prior to the reinstatement of your license.
The Registry will ask your treating physician to give a medical diagnosis and to provide all of the above-listed information in writing and to a reasonable degree of medical certainty. Many doctors are overly concerned with “liability” and they might be hesitant to advocate for keeping their patients on the road.
If after reviewing the information that your doctor provides the Registry is not convinced that you are medically qualified to safely operate a motor vehicle, the Registry will send you a Request for Medical Surrender of Driver’s License. If you fail to surrender your license, the Registry will issue an indefinite immediate threat revocation.
To prevent the unexpected loss of your license, you should discuss your medical condition with your healthcare provider prior to submitting the HP placard application and make sure that he or she will complete the application favorably and not interfere with your driver’s license. It is much easier to prevent the RMV from taking your license than it is to convince the Registry to reinstate it.
When a medical professional, police officer, or healthcare provider informs the RMV that indicated that you have a medical condition that inhibits your ability to operate a motor vehicle safely, the Registry will send you a Request for Medical Surrender of Driver’s License and the Registry may also impose an immediate threat medical suspension.
If you voluntarily surrender your license, the Registry will allow you to obtain a Registry Identification Card for free.
You have the right to challenge your license surrender request or immediate threat medical revocation. These actions can be appealed to the Registry and to the Board of Appeal. If you are appealing the suspension or surrender of your license, you should have legal representation.