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Changes advocated in license renewals for seniors
Senior citizens not only drive more these days, but have sped past
teenagers as the age group with the highest number of traffic
accidents per mile.
These and other sobering statistics highlight the need for changes
in state driver's license renewals to address the risks that elderly
drivers pose to other drivers and themselves, David Rosenfield
writes in the current issue of the Elder Law Journal, published by
the College of Law at the University of Illinois at
Urbana-Champaign.
The fastest growing segment of the driving population, seniors make
up 9 percent (about 19 million) of the nation's drivers. This figure
is expected to jump to more than 30 million drivers by 2020.
Drivers aged 75 and older have a 37 percent higher crash rate than
younger drivers, said Rosenfield, an editor at the journal. And
because they are more physically fragile than their younger
counterparts, senior drivers are more likely to be injured in a car
crash. With the exception of teenage drivers, seniors have the
highest probability of death resulting from an auto-related accident
of any age group.
While age alone does not determine a person's ability to operate an
automobile, "evidence suggests that certain characteristics
associated with aging impair driving performance," Rosenfield said.
Perhaps the most serious physical disability is the decreased
ability of an elderly person to see at night. In addition, studies
show that a person's risk evaluation, cognitive capacity and
decision-making abilities often decrease with age, which, along with
motor ability problems and encroaching dementia, can impair driving
performance.
To counteract these physical and mental ailments, many elderly
persons take medication.
"In many instances, these medications have adverse side effects" on
their driving skills, Rosenfield wrote. "For example,
benzodiazepines, commonly taken for anxiety and insomnia, may cause
confusion, drowsiness, decreased motor coordination and impaired
memory. To make matters worse, many elderly drivers are often
unaware of the adverse side effects posed by medications."
While all states require some form of visual testing when a license
is first issued to a driver, many states don't require drivers to
undergo vision testing as part of the renewal process.
Furthermore, no state now requires a mental or competency test as a
prerequisite for obtaining a license renewal once a person reaches a
certain age. While several states require an application to undergo
a mental health examination if notified by a police officer or
relative, the majority of states "do not have any formal system for
requiring a medical examination, but rather only subject an
applicant to such an examination if the applicant appears mentally
unable to operate an automobile."
Rosenfield recommended that a more uniform and stringent system of
license renewals be adopted by state legislatures. These rules
should address the unique problems posed by elderly drivers "without
jeopardizing an elderly person's independence and sense of dignity."
Legislation requiring automobile insurers to offer discounts to
elderly drivers who complete a driver's safety course, for example,
is a step in the right direction.
An alternative solution posed by some experts -- designing
automobiles with systems designed specifically to aid seniors -- has
more limitations than advantages at present, according to the U. of
I. scholar.
A major drawback is that new technology, such as collision warning
lights or night vision equipment, "necessarily requires that elderly
drivers learn how to use these new devices." Current technology also
"requires drivers to multitask while driving to activate the new
systems," which presents various physical and mental barriers to
many elderly drivers.
From University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
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