Dec. 20, 2024
In response to feedback from NBAA and 13 other aviation groups, the FAA’s Office of Aerospace Medicine announced it will postpone a process change for individuals applying for airman medical certification with incomplete exams and paperwork. The planned process change was meant to help reduce the FAA’s backlog of medical certificate applications.
Under the now-postponed policy, a pilot submitting a medical certificate application without full exam results or other information required for the FAA’s review of a given condition would be issued an initial denial, rather than the deferral and 60-day letter issued under current policy, until the needed information is provided.
In a letter to FAA Federal Air Surgeon Dr. Susan Northrup, NBAA and other organizations said, “The FAA’s use of denials, in lieu of the currently used deferral, as a routine part of the medical application process will significantly increase unneeded confusion for applicants and introduce unintended consequences for those under initial denial.”
For example, these initial denials are reportable on all future medical applications and even some employment applications.
“The ramifications of an increase in airmen receiving and reporting medical denials on these applications and the need to educate hiring managers about this change are significant and will take considerable time,” the organizations said.
Review the full letter to Federal Air Surgeon Dr. Susan Northrup.
“NBAA appreciates the FAA’s desire to reduce the backlog of medical certificate applications. However, the policy change proposed could have long-term implications on pilots’ careers going forward,” said Kristie Greco Johnson. “Dr. Northrup has a track record of proactively working with the industry to find ways to get or keep pilots flying safely. NBAA looks forward to collaborating with the FAA to identify better solutions to solve the medical certificate backlog problem, including educating pilots on the importance of submitting complete medical certificate applications.”
The new process to issue initial denials was to be implemented Jan. 1, 2025, and is now postponed to March 1, 2025. In addition to postponing the new policy implementation, the FAA will hold a listening session with the community prior to implementation.